The Lethbridge Steamers hosted a wheelchair basketball tournament this weekend. Visiting teams included the Calgary Rollers and Medicine Hat Mustangs.
The first day was heated with an opening match between the Steamers and Rollers. After a close game, the Rollers fought their way to the top, outscoring the Steamers 44-40.
The two-day tournament ended with the triumphant Rollers winning first place, the Steamers closing in second place and the Mustangs in third.
The Steamers are a southern Alberta wheelchair basketball team that competes in the Prairie Division with Edmonton, Calgary, Medicine Hat, Saskatoon and Winnipeg.
The Steamers were formerly known as the Strong Arms and started in the early 1980s playing in national and international competitions. The unisex team has players from Lethbridge, Fort McLeod, Taber and Raymond.
In the late 2000s, the team lost some momentum, and players started to leave. However, Mary Dyck, a former professor at the University of Lethbridge, was hired to teach adaptive physical activity. Through her research, she found John Banman, a longtime local player for the Steamers. Together, they relaunched the team in 2012 and have played ever since.
“In 2004, I had a spinal cord injury, so therefore I was paralyzed,” Banman said.
He was approached by wheelchair basketball to play in 2004 and started in 2007.
“It gets me out, active. I love the game. You get to travel, meet different players, and (play in) tournaments,” Banman said. “I’m so happy they approached me.
“I’ve been playing for a long time, and I will be as long as I can.”
Wheelchair basketball is a Paralympic sport, with Team Canada being one of the top teams in the world. The sport has roots in the Second World War, where injured war veterans would play for rehabilitation.
READ MORE: Lethbridge hosts Alberta B Wheelchair Basketball Tournament
“It certainly became motivational for soldiers to continue to work,” said Dyck, the manager for the Steamers. “It provided social and psychological benefits.”
The game is organized with a point system based on ability, allowing people with or without a disability to play together.
Each team is allowed to have 15 points out at one time. A player with low mobility and ability would be rated a 0.5, and a player with no mobility challenges would be rated a 4.5.
“So, therefore, we could never have five 4.5s out at the same time,” Dyck said.
The game rules are the same as regular basketball, from the height of the hoop to how long a player can hold the ball. The only difference is doing it all on two wheels.
“Each chair is built for the athlete, and some, for example, would have weaker abdominal muscles either due to paralysis or some other condition,” Dyck said. “So each chair might have a higher back or a lower back depending on what is needed. It may have sides on it if there are some side flexibility challenges.”
The Lethbridge Wheelchair Basketball Association runs a drop-in program in the Fritz Sick Gym on Thursday evenings.
Dyck said the program is open to all, from 6:45 p.m. until 8:15 p.m.
“And we have the chairs. It’s free of charge,” she said. “We welcome anyone from the community, whether you have mobility challenges or not, to just come out and try.”
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