The Engineering Of Paralympic Wheelchairs
How the engineering of paralympic wheelchairs can help athletes today
“Just as football, tennis and basketball players wear different shoes on the playing field, Para athletes do likewise in wheelchair sports.” says paralympic.org. Wheelchairs that are used in the Paralympics are made to fit the athletes bodies and what kind of disability or impairments that they have. Ultimately, the wheel chair depends on their sport. For example, one would never find a three wheeled chair, which is designed for racing, being used in a game of wheelchair basketball.
One of USA’s wheelchair racers, Josh George, states that, ““In a basketball chair, it’s all more explosive. So one would need a much stronger back in basketball because you’re constantly stopping and changing directions, and that uses a lot of pulling muscles, whereas wheelchair racing is entirely pushing muscles,”
When one sits in a basketball chair, they are elevated significantly higher, meaning that the wheels, or push rim, are bigger. In a basketball wheelchair, the push rim can range from 60-68cm in diameter, compared to 35-39cm in a racing chair. “Athletes’ stroke length is a lot shorter in wheelchair basketball and require quicker hands and explosive power to stop and change directions. Meanwhile, everything that has gone into a racing wheelchair is designed for straight ahead speed, and athletes have to manage their energy efficiency depending on the distance they are racing” says, George.
Overall, it is a comfort thing and genuinely a preference to the athletes on what wheelchair they decide to play in. However, engineers in the past years have created incredible wheelchairs that are designed to help one play, so take try to take advantage!
Related Stories:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheelchair_racing
https://www.physio-pedia.com/Role_of_the_Wheelchair
https://www.karmanhealthcare.com/how-manual-wheelchairs-work/
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