Wheelchair Basketball India needs a ramp of funds

The cost of the trip is estimated to be Rs 15 lakh and they have already received Rs 5 lakh. They are hoping to raise the remaining amount through an online campaign.

India’s performance in the 2016 Paralympics is a testimony to the talent and will power of the  Indian players, despite their physical challenges. However, the representation of India had been seen in solo sports. “We wanted a  team sport representation in international tournaments and started the federation in 2014 to bring together young basketball players,” says Madhavi Latha, President of WBFI. 

Since the inception, they have organised technical camps and workshops, in which international players and coaches helped the Indian players hone their skills. “Wheelchair basketball is an extremely popular sport abroad, but it’s still struggling to find a foot here. Sports is the right of every child and people with disabilities often do not have the facilities to participate in any. After the inception, we have trained 400 players  and 80 staff members across the country,” says Madhavi, who adds that the team is accredited by The International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF). 

In October they organised a special camp at Sathyabama University where they invited over 22 players from all over India for training, out of which 12 were selected to represent the country in Bangkok. They were trained by the Lebanese coach, Toufic Allouche. 

“We need a minimum of Rs 15 lakh for organising training camps. South India Shelters Pvt Ltd as well as a few friends and family have helped us get Rs 5 lakh and we have launched an online campaign for further help,” says Madhavi, reiterating that these are just for the basic needs. One high performance wheelchair used by the players cost Rs 3 lakh, but we’re not even looking at that right now. We only want to give them international exposure,” she says. 

Meanwhile, the 12 selected players are practising hard. Nineteen year-old  Parthasarathi V from Theni and the captain of the team says, “As of now, we all are practising by ourselves but we need to practise as a team.” Parthasarathi was seriously injured in 2014 after which he was wheelchair-bound. “I played basketball even before the injury and no amount of obstacles can stop me from pursuing the sport I like. I hope that we get the support we need to encourage the sport,” he says.