University of Michigan's adaptive sports program connects athletes of all abilities

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - The University of Michigan's Adaptive Sports & Fitness program launched in 2018. 

It aims to connect people with and without disabilities to participate equally on the court, on the track, and the field. 

Both U-M students and community members make up the competitive and recreational teams. 

For wheelchair basketball player Stephen Tinnin, tennis is relatively new to him. He started training in March and says the tricky part about it is the high level of coordination needed to play.  

"Just pushing with the racket and pushing without the racket in my other hand, it was very hard at first, but you get used to it the more and more and more that you play," said Tinnin. 

Since its launch five years ago, the adaptive sports program has rapidly expanded. 

It now has four competitive sports teams: Wheelchair tennis, wheelchair basketball, wheelchair rugby and adaptive track and field.  

Coach Christopher Kelley played for the program's tennis team when he was a student.  

"Athletes train anywhere from four to seven times per week," said Kelley, who is also the Adaptive Sport program coordinator. "They do competitions all around the United States. We have four athletes that are within our program that are heading down to Santiago, Chile, I think next week, for the Parapan Am Games. So, really, we're trying to make sure people have access and opportunity at any level that they want to participate." 

The program has partnered with local healthcare professionals and Ann Arbor Public Schools to bring more awareness and access to the adaptive sports world.  

Kelley said every sixth grader in AAPS will learn to play wheelchair basketball, wheelchair tennis and more, with plans to expand the programming to Ypsilanti shortly. 

Head athletic trainer Kurt Beach said his favorite part of coming to practices is seeing the athlete's determination on the court.  

"They all go through their own struggles, just like everybody else does," said Beach. "And each one of these guys is coming out every single day and try to compete and do their best that they can in each individual sport that they have." 

"This program is just so amazing, and I've met so many incredible people and really hard-working and talented athletes," said community outreach coordinator Emily Eitzman. "And playing these sports myself has been so much fun." 

The team is hosting a tournament against Michigan State University at the Varsity Tennis Center on Nov. 18. Admission is free and open to the public.  

The Varsity Tennis Center is located at 2250 S. State St.  

For more information about U-M's Adaptive Sports & Fitness program, visit here.