UNITED STATES QUAD RUGBY ASSOCIATION

Team USA

3.5 Joe Soares
3.0 Brad Updegrove
2.5 Mike Wyatt
2.0 Dave Gould
2.0 Cliff Chunn
1.5 Bill Renje
1.0 Dave Ceruti
0.5 Eddie Crouch

US Wins Gold in Quad Rugby

By Kristin Kany
reprinted from RUGBY Magazine

Atlanta, GA - August 23, 1996

Although none of the athletes on the US Quadriplegic Rugby Team had ever taken the pitch as an able-bodied rugby player, each demonstrated the heart, athleticism and intensity of the ruggers we all strive to be. Their hard work came to fruition as the United States won the gold medal by beating Canada 37-30 in the quad rugby final at the International Paralympic Games in Atlanta.

Paralympic Games

Quad rugby was included as a demonstration sport in this year's Paralympic Games. Since its inception in Rome in 1960 the Paralympics have flourished. The 1996 Atlanta Games hosted 3,500 elite athletes with physical disabilities from 127 nations, 1,000 coaches and team staff, 1,500 officials and personnel, and 12,000 volunteers. Sydney, Australia will stage the next Paralympic Games in 2000 and the International Paralympic Committee has given the official. nod for quad rugby to have competitive event status.

Started in 1970

Quad rugby was created in the late 1970's by Canadian Brad Mikkelsen and his colleagues. Mikkelsen introduced the game to the US in the 1980s and the USQRA now boasts 65 club teams. The competitive season runs from October until the National Championships in April. Regional playoffs determine which clubs will vie for the national trophy, and potential US squad players are viewed throughout this process.

Three camps were held prior to the Paralympics. US coaches and staff sought sponsorship, organized logistics, ran the camps, and spearheaded selections in preparation for the inaugural international event.

The Basics

Quad rugby is played with a volleyball on a regulation-sized basketball court. Squads are comprised of eight players (men & women), with four per team competing on the court during 8 minute quarters. Substitutions are permitted.

The athletes are classified within a seven level disability scale, with 0.5 indicating the most severe disability and 3.5 denoting the least. Coaches stratagize within the parameters of the combined 8.0 rating total of their four players' quadriplegic classifications. Scores, worth one point, are obtained by athletes carrying the ball in a controlled fashion on or over the goal line. They have 15 seconds to cross the 50 and must bounce the ball every 10 seconds. The ball itself can be thrown, rolled, batted dribbled, or carried upfield. Meanwhile, picks are set, cuts are made, man-to-man presses are instituted, and wheelchairs are bashed. Occasionally, chairs and players crash to the floor and trainers rush to upright the athletes, who are strapped in at the waist, knees, and ankles.

Most members of the US team had previously participated in competitive athletics during their lives, although none had played rugby prior to their confinements in the wheelchairs. A neurological disease, a gunshot injury, and an alcohol-related automobile accident are among the causes of the players quadriplegic status. Seventeen year old Cliff Chunn is currently ranked third nationally with the quad open division in tennis.

The quad ruggers relish the game and many feel it has provided a plethora of opportunity. Benefits from their participation include growth from total dependence to minimal need for assistance, demanding physical involvement, intense competitions, worldwide travel, and the basic opportunity to create friendships and become part of a group that feels like a home. As one US player put it, "My teammates are my best friends. We'd do anything for each other on or off the field"

About the Author: Kristin Kany is a women's Eagle and a member of Boston Women's RFC. She moved to Atlanta specifically to volunteer with quad rugby in the Paralympics and field hockey in the Olympics.

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