Basketball is one of the most popular sports worldwide, yet few know that physically unable sportsmen play it. More than 100 countries play wheelchair basketball, including France, the US, and Great Britain at the Paris Paralympics 2024.
Initial designs for the wheelchair basketball were to help wounded warriors recover and relieve stress.
Wheelchair basketball was named after the physically disabled competitors who used wheelchairs to travel the court.
According to the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation, the sport was initially played in 1945 between two US hospitals.
The International Paralympic Committee: "Injured WWII veterans invented wheelchair basketball in 1946 in the US. Most were once able-bodied players who longed to play.
The sport grew across the US and overseas with modest wheelchair adaptations and regulation changes."
Wheelchair basketball debuted at the 1960 Rome Paralympics. The Rome Paralympics comprised eight sports, including wheelchair basketball.
The US won two wheelchair basketball gold medals in the inaugural campaign.