UPDATE: An anonymous donor has purchased a new set of wheels for Green.
A B.C. Paralympian is desperate to get his wheelchair rugby wheels back.
The spare wheels for 31-year-old Byron Green’s rugby wheelchair were stolen when his car was broken into over the weekend.
The thieves made off with his equipment bag and two custom wheels for his rugby wheelchair, collectively worth $2,300.
Green, who has been playing competitive wheelchair rugby for the past decade, says the wheels would be useless to anyone else, but cost thousands of dollars to replace.
“There are probably only about 25 people who play wheelchair rugby in Vancouver,” says Green. “It’s kind of a small market to sell to. I am just sad because they will probably end up in a dumpster somewhere when they find out they can’t really get anything for it.”
The rugby wheels are a big part of Green’s preparation for the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games.
Wheelchair rugby is a full contact sport and athletes require multiple sets of wheels because they blow tires often throughout the game.
A rugby wheelchair can cost over $12,000, and each wheel retails for up to $1,800.
The wheels are also not manufactured in Canada, so Green will have to wait for weeks before his spare wheels can even be replaced.
Kevin Bowie, program manager for wheelchair rugby with BC Wheelchair Sports Association, says having spare wheels is important for both competitions and training.
“It takes a while to get a new set of wheels beat in,” says Bowie.
He says the theft of customized equipment can be a big blow for an athlete like Byron.
“It is really taking away his ability to play a sport, not just his sporting equipment,” says Bowie. “The chair is Byron’s only ability to play the game.”
Green says having no spare wheels is definitely affecting his training, especially ahead of an event in the U.K., where he will be competing for a spot on the 2016 Paralympic team.
Green has made the national team every year since 2013.
He has won a gold medal at the Toronto 2015 Parapan American Games and a silver medal at the 2014 World Wheelchair Rugby Championships.
Anyone with information about the stolen wheels is asked to contact the Vancouver Police Department who is continuing its investigation into the theft.
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