The goal of CAF’s Wheelchair Basketball Training Zone, in collaboration with the National Wheelchair Basketball Association, is to help develop and introduce athletes of all ages and abilities to the sport of wheelchair basketball through:
– A comprehensive training video library
– Support through CAF’s annual grant program as basketball wheelchairs are the most requested and funded item
– Information on local adaptive sports groups who have wheelchair basketball teams and tournaments hosted
– Collaboration with the NWBA, the national governing body in the sport
Whether you’re just getting started or looking to develop your skills to get to the next level, the Zone will help you along your journey through the sport.
CAF’s Annual Grant Program supports individuals with physical disabilities by providing funding for:
– Travel/Competition Expenses
– Coaching/Training Expenses
– Adaptive Sports Equipment
Wheelchair Basketball is the consistently most requested sport for grant funding, and last year, CAF awarded over 400 grants for wheelchair basketball under all three categories. See the full 2020 CAF Grant Distribution Info here.
Built for all basketball players, the Nike Air Zoom UNVRS FlyEase gives you a quick + easy way to get into your shoes and onto the court.
Abby is a former US Paralympian in wheelchair basketball, and is a 2016 Rio Paralympic Gold Medalist. She competed on Team USA for 5 years, and competed at the University of Texas at Arlington for 5 years with two national championships. She graduated with a Bachelors degree in Kinesiology, and is now a Certified Personal Trainer.
Courtney Ryan took her first steps on the soccer fields which she came to regard as her second home. She played soccer from the age of four and went on to become a collegiate soccer player. When she was nineteen, she sustained a spinal cord injury (SCI) after a blood clot burst in her spinal cord. After sustaining her disability, she was exposed to wheelchair basketball through the CAF mentor program and fell in love with the sport. Since then, she has excelled, playing wheelchair basketball for the University of Arizona, the US National Team, a professional team in Australia, and founded the only women’s wheelchair basketball team in California. In 2020 (now 2021), Courtney will compete with Team USA in the Paralympic Games Tokyo. She wants to use knowledge of adaptive athletics to improve the lives of disabled people.
Megan discovered adaptive sports after a motorcycle accident paralyzed her from the waist down. She was just a month out of high school and battling depression prior to the crash. She then spent the following year in the dark until she witnessed a group of wheelchair basketball players competing on a high level. Megan gave the sport a try and changed the trajectory of her life. CAF gave Megan her first grant for a basketball wheelchair, leading to her improving skills and receiving a full-ride scholarship to the University of Illinois, joining the Team USA development team, and rising to the top of the podium at the 2016 Rio Paralympics.
Nate has represented Team USA for wheelchair basketball since 2009, competing in two Paralympic Games and three World Championships. At 16 years old, he was diagnosed with osteosarcoma and underwent nine months of chemotherapy and a 14-hour surgery to remove the tumor from his leg. In the surgery, his knee and part of his tibia were replaced with titanium. Nate discovered wheelchair basketball at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater in 2006 and his entire life changed. The sport not only gave him the opportunity to be an athlete again, but it also reignited his confidence, self-worth, and positive outlook on life. He has been part of the CAF community since 2014 and is currently preparing for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics.
Steve is the co-captain of the USA Men’s National Wheelchair Basketball Team. When he was 11 months old, he had surgery to remove a spinal tumor which resulted in paraplegia from the compression of his spinal cord. Steve was introduced to wheelchair basketball at 15 years old, giving him the power to embrace the things that made him different. He continued playing the game through college at the University of Illinois and made his Paralympic debut with the USA National Team in 2008 in Beijing. Steve most recently brought home the gold medal from the Rio 2016 Games.
Trevon Jenifer was born without limbs due to a rare disease called Congenital Phocomelia. When Trevon was 4 years old, his step-dad came into his life and helped raise him. All of Trevon’s siblings were participating in sports, so his step-dad found an organization that offered Wheelchair Track and Wheelchair Basketball. Trevon broke and still holds the records in the 100, 200, 400 and 800 meter races for Wheelchair Track in the U11 and U14 age groups. When he was 15 years old, he competed in Wrestling his junior and senior year in High School. His senior year he finished 3rd in the State of Maryland having a record of 32-8. Trevon was inducted into the Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2006, and that same year wrote an autobiography about his life called “From the Ground Up.”From 2006-2011, Trevon attended Edinboro University of Pennsylvania where earned his Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice with a minor in Sociology. He was a member of the Edinboro University Wheelchair Basketball Team, where he was a 2x All-American. Trevon made his first Team USA appearance in 2009, and went on to make the Men’s National Team in 2010. He is a 2X Paralympic medalist, winning a Bronze Medal in the 2012 in London and Gold Medalist in the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio. With all of Trevon’s accolades his pride and joys are his beautiful family and two children that he loves dearly.