Striving to Make Padel Completely Inclusive |
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Chris Warren talks about the community programme at the Rocks Lane facility
November 27, 2022 The man behind the Rocks Lane sports facility on Chiswick Back Common, Chris Warren, has spoken about his ambition to make the centre truly inclusive. He was one of the pioneers of wheelchair tennis in Bishops Park in Fulham in the eighties and says that our understanding of what inclusivity actually is has changed hugely since then, with wheelchair players now playing on the same courts as top professionals like Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal. A number of wheelchair players have started to attend social padel sessions in Chiswick. Chris says, “Chatting with Samanta (Brazil’s former No1 wheelchair tennis player and model) and Mark Bullock (pioneer of inclusive sport) recently after one of our Saturday morning padel socials, I was enlightened by their take on sport for everyone. “It seems that a lot of people see sport for wheelchair players, the blind, the deaf and people with other challenges as a separate sport. “Maybe this attitude comes from watching the Paralympics or other major televised events for people with disabilities.” He played a game with some wheelchair padel players along with his son and his friend last Saturday. The boys were delighted to hear that they would be participating in the sport and not just watching. Players in wheelchairs can play padel against able-bodied opponents using specially designed chairs with allow quick turns and fast movement. The only allowance is made is that the wheelchair players are allowed two bounces of the ball before making a return. Chris added, after talking to the wheelchair users, “It struck me that players with different challengers do not want special treatment and separate sessions, they want to be part of everyday sessions, playing, training, learning and competing with players of all abilities and individual challenges. “So, for venues it is important to make court bookings and coaching sessions as open and accessible as possible both in terms of physical access and ease of booking. “It is also important to train staff and educate players of the importance of including and encouraging an open-minded approach to playing with people of all ages, abilities and challenges, something that padel is well positioned to offer.”
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