Adaptive Rowing

The Indianapolis Rowing Center is proud to offer rowing to the physically challenged individuals in the Indianapolis community. IRC has acquired adaptive equipment through a Christopher Reeve Foundation grant allowing us to teach on the indoor rowing machines and then provide on-the-water rowing opportunities.

Adaptive rowing at the Indianapolis Rowing Center began in 2011 with a Learn to Row clinic for all individuals with a disability.

Adaptive Rowing Coach

Sue Gath - Sue.Gath@indyrowing.org

Classifications
Within adaptive rowing, there are subdivisions called classifications. Currently, there are four categories for adaptive rowers based on a functional classification system:

AS - arms and shoulders
TA - trunk and arms
LTA - legs, trunk, and arms
LTAIDMix4+ - since the 2010 World Championships the legs, trunk and arms mixed coxed four for intellectually disabled

Indianapolis Rowing Center receives $7,640 grant from Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation for Adaptive Rowing

INDIANAPOLIS, IN – (February 26, 2015) – The Indianapolis Rowing Center (IRC) is proud to announce that it has received a $7,640 Quality of Life grant from the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation. The award was one of 75 grants totaling over $600,137 awarded by the Reeve Foundation to nonprofit organizations nationwide that provide more opportunities, access, and daily quality of life for individuals living with paralysis, their families, and caregivers. Conceived by the late Dana Reeve, the program has awarded over 2,400 grants totaling over $18 million since 1999.

The Indianapolis Rowing Center will use the grant for the purchase of a two person rowing shell adapted for individuals with paralysis.

“The Indianapolis Rowing Center is grateful for the grant from the Reeve Foundation to be used for our Adaptive Rowing Program,” said Ryan Hurd, IRC’s Outreach Committee Chair. “Adaptive rowing is becoming more popular among individuals with paralysis. It allows the athlete to leave their wheelchair behind, and explore their capabilities out on the water. We currently only have one adaptive rowing shell in the boathouse, which forces us to limit the number of athletes that can row during practice. This grant will allow us to triple that number during a practice session.”

“The Reeve Foundation is committed to supporting programs and resources that foster independent living, improved health and community engagement,” said Maggie Goldberg, Vice President of Policy and Programs, Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation. “The recognized grantees are instrumental to our work at the Reeve Foundation as we strive to serve the disability community with a roadmap of resources and programs to enhance their quality of life.”

The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation Quality of Life Grants Program was created to address the myriad needs of children and adults living with paralysis, as well as provide assistance and education to their families and caregivers. Funded programs serve individuals living with spinal cord injury and other injuries, diseases or birth conditions, including but not limited to, stroke, spina bifida, multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The grants support life-changing initiatives that aim to increase quality of life by improving physical and emotional health, broadening community engagement, and increasing independence. Quality of Life grants are funded through a cooperative agreement with the Administration for Community Living (cooperative agreement number 90PR3001-01-00).

About the Reeve Foundation

The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation is dedicated to curing spinal cord injury by funding innovative research and improving the quality of life for people living with paralysis through grants, information and advocacy. We meet all 20 of the Better Business Bureau’s standards for charity accountability and hold the BBB’s Charity Seal. The Paralysis Resource Center (PRC) is a program of the Reeve Foundation, and is funded through a cooperative agreement with the Administration for Community Living, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (cooperative agreement number 90PR3001-01-00). For more information, please visit our website at www.ChristopherReeve.org or call 800-539-7309.

History of Adaptive Rowing

The following is from the USRowing website

In 1980, Chris Blackwall, the executive director of USRowing, started the first U.S. rowing club solely for people with disabilities, the Philadelphia Rowing Program for the Disabled (PRPD). Other programs were starting up all over the world, and in 1993, adaptive rowing was included for the first time as an exhibition event at the FISA World Rowing Junior Championships in Finland and then again in 1999 at the World Rowing Championships in St. Catharines, Ontario.

In 2002, the FISA world championships began to include adaptive rowing in the regular program. The sport gained momentum in 2005, when the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) voted to include adaptive rowing in the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games. Achieving this major milestone spurred the growth of adaptive rowing worldwide. There are now 26 countries competing at the international level, which is an impressive increase from 2002 when only seven countries participated. As the number of programs worldwide increased, so did the level of competition.