Wheelchair basketball teams showcase talent

Monday, February 26, 2007

The Kansas Wheelhawks and Kansas City Thunder showcased their version of basketball to fans during halftime at the Kansas-Iowa State basketball game Saturday night.

Drew Ravnikar, who plays for the Wheelhawks, a Topeka-based Kansas City wheelchair basketball team, said he was thrilled to play in front of the Allen Fieldhouse crowd.

“It gave me chills the first time I heard the cheers,” he said.

The Wheelhawks later defeated their rival, the Kansas City Thunder, 63-34, in front of about 60 people at the Student Recreation and Fitness Center after the Jayhawks’ basketball game.

The sport allows up to 12 class points on the court at any given time: class ratings are based on mobility and type of injury. Players with disabilities that have the lowest impact on strength and balance are given a class three status. Class one is reserved for those with severe injuries.

Ravnikar, who is from Spring Hill, is a class three third-year player for the Wheelhawks. He is partially blind in his left eye. Both of his legs were amputated last September. He was back on the court two months after his surgery.

“If you don’t pursue everything to its fullest extent every day, you can’t succeed and you won’t progress,” he said.

Paula Rose, Kansas City, Mo., graduate student, volunteered at the event, giving temporary tattoos to children and adults alike. She said the game was inspirational for adults and kids in the crowd.

“This is something I’ve never seen before,” she said. “It’s neat to see people with disabilities engaging in sports.”

Ray Petty, 40-year-old Wheelhawks center and forward, has played wheelchair basketball since 1990.

“If you’re not going to run up and down the court, you can roll up and down the court,” he said.

Petty said the players coached themselves and were on the road at least once a month. The Wheelhawks play in the Midwest conference, which is comprised of teams from Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska. The Wheelhawks won seven of the last eight conference tournaments.

Melissa Manning, associate director of disability resources, said more wheelchair sports were being organized, such as a wheelchair tennis clinic on March 3.

“It’s a very good thing for people to see that folks in wheelchairs can be athletic,” she said.

Wheelhawks player Jim Kesler played on the Olympic wheelchair volleyball team at the 1996 Atlanta Paralympics. He, like many other players on the team, tapes his fingers to help prevent blisters from pushing. Kesler, 45 years old, is in his 13th year with the Wheelhawks.

“You play as long as you’re able,” he said.

Kansan staff writer Brian Lewis-Jones can be contacted at bljones@kansan.com.

—Edited by Darla Slipke

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