Today is National Adaptive Sports Day and we are joining the movement to celebrate the impact of sport and honor our adaptive community. We are celebrating on April 28 because that date marks the anniversary of the signing of the regulations enforcing Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, the landmark civil rights legislation that barred discrimination against people with disabilities in federally funded programs, including sports and recreation.
Last week, Move United hosted an education conference uniting adaptive athletes, sport professionals, and providers for education, skill building, and peer-to-peer knowledge sharing.
ACA Education and Outreach Manager Ben Morton attended the conference and shared that, “the conference was fantastic and the ACA’s presence there was significant.”
ACA Instructor Trainer, Joe Moore, led a 3-day ACA Adaptive Paddling Workshop the weekend prior to the conference. Additionally, in a presentation on Talent Identification, Recruitment, and Transfer, the USOPC staff highlighted the ACA as actively recruiting and developing athletes for the Paracanoe discipline.
On the second day of the conference ACA Instructor Trainer, Crystal Skahan, and ACA Instructor, Eileen Turpin, led a full day session on the Intersection of Risk Management Systems and Kayak Programming. Within this session the ACA was highlighted numerous times as the industry standard in paddlesports education and instruction, and resources were shared with participants regarding how to earn ACA Instructor Certification.”
On the final day of the conference, ACA Kayak Instructor Trainer and Leader Trainer, Wayne Douchkoff, led a session on the final day of the conference, Paddling Toward Inclusion: Lessons from working with teens with vision loss and veterans with PTSD.
Meanwhile, USA Paracanoe National Team Coach Kaitlyn McElroy was, and still is, hosting a weeklong training camp with paracanoe athletes in Oklahoma City, working with a range of athletes from first-time paddlers all the way up to Paralympic athlete Jillian Elwart.
As we spotlight adaptive sports, Kaitlyn reminds us that, “the outdoors can be accessible and fun for everyone. Participation in sport doesn’t have an age limit or a skill level requirement.”
Nearly 1 in 4 Americans — approximately 61 million people — live with a disability, yet people with disabilities remain among the most underrepresented in sports and recreation programs nationwide. We are so grateful to every member, instructor, athlete, coach, volunteer and partner who work make paddlesports more accessible.