# Able bodied folks in wheelchair races ? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 21, 2002, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/able-bodied-folks-in-wheelchair-races/115261 "2002-06-21T13:16:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Doctordec](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/cdc98d/32.png) [@Doctordec](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctordec)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2002, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/able-bodied-folks-in-wheelchair-races/115261/1 "2002-06-21T13:16:43Z")
This question came up in my running group last week and nobody had an answer so I have come to the Dopers. Could an able bodied person with no physical disability buy a wheelchair and race in the wheelchair class in a marathon ? One of my fellow runners said he saw a major crash one time in a race and one of the wheelchair competitors got up and ran back to his chair. I’m not planning on doing it…just curious. ---
**Author:** ![DonJorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/47e85d/32.png) [@DonJorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DonJorge)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2002, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/able-bodied-folks-in-wheelchair-races/115261/2 "2002-06-21T15:12:33Z")
It depends on the event you will be competing. If the rules state that you have to have a disability, then it will be illegal. I remember in the last Paralimpics there was a big stir when a team from Spain was disqualified when it was discovered they were not actually physically disabled… [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport/hi/english/other\_sports/newsid\_1071000/1071059.stm](http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport/hi/english/other_sports/newsid_1071000/1071059.stm) ---
**Author:** ![DonJorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/47e85d/32.png) [@DonJorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DonJorge)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2002, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/able-bodied-folks-in-wheelchair-races/115261/3 "2002-06-21T15:17:01Z")
[QUOTE] \*Originally posted by DonJorge \* \*\*… they were not actually physically disabled… .:smack: Please change that to “they were not actually disabled”. They were claiming a mental handicap… However, the point stands: you are supposed to be disabled to compete ---
**Author:** ![Threadkiller](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/aca169/32.png) [@Threadkiller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Threadkiller)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2002, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/able-bodied-folks-in-wheelchair-races/115261/4 "2002-06-21T19:00:59Z")
I would depend on the race. But apparently not > [@](#): > > Wheelchair Division An open class T1-2 and T3-4 event for men and women, who use wheelchairs in sport and have completed the marathon distance in a qualified time, within the allotted calendar time frame. This division follows the rules and guidelines as defined by Wheelchair Sports USA and the International Stoke-Mandeville Games Federation. **According to these Rules, the Wheelchair Division of the Boston Marathon is reserved for athletes classified as having a disability. Able-bodied individuals may not participate in the Wheelchair Division.** > > [Bolding mine] I once heard Curt Brinkman give a speech. He was/is [pretty good](http://special.northernlight.com/marathon/wheelchair_palaestra.htm) > [@](#): > > The 1980 Boston Marathon reached a significant turning point. Curt Brinkman of Orem, Utah, became the first male to break two hours (1:55:00) and the first wheelchair athlete ever to outpace nondisabled runners by beating Bill Rogers (2: 12:11). I really don’t think that it would/should matter as someone confined to a wheelchair has several advantages.[ul]\* They are more used to controlling the thing. - They have built up the upper body strength and endurance required. - Hi Opal! - They (often) have no or atrophied legs which equals less (wasted) mass to push around.[/ul]Brinkman lost his legs in an incident involving a 40 foot aluminum pipe and a power line. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2002, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/able-bodied-folks-in-wheelchair-races/115261/5 "2002-06-22T04:24:26Z")
Dont know the rules but several years ago Runner’s World magazine published an article by a fellow who trained to do a race in a wheelchair. Needless to say he was at a MAJOR disadvantage racing against those who had been doing this for years.(Dont know the issue,need to dig through years of back issues to find)