Sport Leagues and Kids with Disabilities Kids with disabilities want to participate in sports for the same reasons that kids without disabilities do, and these young athletes and their families are beginning to change sport. by John N. McGovern, JD, CTRS The goalie springs and misses as the soccer ball blasts by off the crutch of a halfback. An outfielder moves in the direction urged by a coach on the field, and reaches down to grasp the ball and throws it to the cutoff. Wheeling toward the baseline, a point guard in a wheelchair passes to a standing teammate for a lay-up. Sound unlikely to you? Scenes like this are common in the minds of many athletes and their families. Some of these dreams are coming to life on fields and courts across the country. Kids with disabilities want to participate in sports for the same reasons that kids without disabilities do, and these young athletes and their families are beginning to change sport. This important issue in our field is getting more attention in another type of court. State and federal courts and administrative bodies that decide complaints are hearing about sport programs and children with disabilities. Some sport governing bodies are changing rules to make sports more accessible.
This article outlines key issues for sport league managers
and agencies that make facilities or fields available for leagues.
ADA General Requirements Illinois Parks & Recreation * May/June 1996 * 17 ties available in the most integrated setting. An agency is prohibited from refusing to permit participation or involvement in programs unless such involvement would be an undue financial burden or would fundamentally alter the game or sport. Three concepts rule this area: most integrated setting, undue financial burden, and fundamental alteration. All are discussed later in this article. Private groups, incorporated or not, which offer league or sport opportunities, are also affected by the ADA. Again, integration is required, and private groups are prohibited from excluding a participant with a disability unless such involvement would be an undue financial burden or would fundamentally alter the game or sport. Are any leagues exempt? Yes, two types are exempt: a league conducted by a religious organization on religious organization property, such as a volleyball league run at the church gym; and an event such as a swim meet run by a private country club, at the country club pool, for the children of club members. But even these events may not escape some requirements, as under Illinois law (Illinois Human Rights Act), churches and private clubs are not exempt from prohibitions against discrimination.
Reasonable Changes or Accommodations Many simple changes can be made to enable a person with a disability to play. Some may require a bit more thought, and some may require a piece of equipment. Most changes require only flexibility and are commonsense changes that we may even see in effect already for younger age groups. Examples include rule changes: allowing a basketball player in a wheelchair to take two "steps" (or pushes of the wheels on the chair) between dribbles; use of adaptive equipment such as padded or adhesive grips on sticks or bats for players with limited grasping ability; allowing an extra staff, coach, or volunteer on the field to direct the effort of a player with a cognitive disability; use of sign language interpreters in huddles, during practice, on the bench, and perhaps on the field of play to communicate with players with impaired hearing; use of protective equipment, such as facemasks or chestpads for players with limited mobility who cannot move out of the way of an inside fastball; moving scheduled games from sites that are not accessible to accessible sites, and removing architectural barriers such as inaccessible portable toilets. These types of changes are tried and true. They have worked in special recreation programs since the 1970s. Depending on the sport and the player—and, yes, the level of competition— they can be effective in a league.
Who Pays? 18 * Illinois Parks & Recreation * May/June 1996 these changes. For example, if softball registration is $50 and the player is deaf and requires a sign language interpreter in practices and games, the team and league cannot pass on the $35 per hour cost for the signer. It must absorb the cost, or spread it through the league by including it as a cost when calculating fees paid by all registrants. Public schools and parks and recreation agencies are prohibited from providing substantial support to organizations [such as sports leagues and associations] that do discriminate on the basis of disability... Safety and Competition The most important case in this area is Anderson v. Little League, a 1992 case from Arizona. Anderson was a boy's baseball third-base coach. He had been a coach for several years. He happens to use a wheelchair. Arizona boy's baseball officials winked at the rule prohibiting anyone in a wheelchair from being on the field during a game. National officials became aware of the failure to uphold this safety rule and threatened to revoke the state charter if all rules were not followed. Reluctantly, state officials told Anderson that all rules would have to be followed for the 1992 tournament. Anderson went to court and claimed enforcement of the rule violated his rights under the ADA. He obtained an order prohibiting the league from enforcing the rule, as no individual assessment of risk had been conducted. The court agreed, saying the ADA requires an individual assessment of risk as part of determining whether accommodations or changes would be successful. Here the league did nothing and applied a blanket rule to all people who use wheelchairs. Anderson, who had the written support of many former baseball players who live in his community, was allowed to coach and the team lost in the second round. By the way, Anderson is a judge. Remember Anderson as we review three other cases. In a 1994 Department of Interior (DOI) administrative decision (Wythe County), DOI hearing officers wrote that competition is an essential part of a boy's basketball league for kids ages 10 to 12. In this complaint, a boy who uses a wheelchair had successfully completed a basketball unit at school in physical education, so he tried to get on a recreation league team. The league, conducted jointly by the County Recreation Commission and a nonprofit association, allowed him to register but refused to allow him on the court for games. His role would be to inbounds the ball after the opponent scores, unless the opponent presses. The league also required a parent to sit with the boy on the bench. DOI agreed with the league. Saying the boy may be a competitive disadvantage. Interior allows the league to limit his role in games. Interior disagrees that a parent must be on the bench, noting that no other parent must do so. In an interesting recommendation, Interior suggests that the boy will never be able to use the league and that the association and the county should consider starting a segregated program just for kids who use wheelchairs. Unlike Anderson, no reference was made to an individual assessment of the risk that a young boy in a wheelchair poses to other players and to himself. This decision would be stronger had such discussion been part of the decision. A pending lawsuit involves a boy with physical impairments who can stand and has played coach-pitch baseball in Ohio. In Goodman v. Wadsworth, the boy wants to play in the next division for his age. This division is the first "kid pitch" opportunity. The boy has difficulty moving out of the way of inside pitches and in practice was frequently struck by pitched balls. The league denied him entry and the family sued, claiming an ADA violation. Reports of the case include little reference to an assessment of risk, and no reference to attempted changes to diminish the risk. How about a catcher's chest pad? How about a helmet with a facemask, which costs around $13? How about allowing him to remain in the coach-pitch division or allowing him to hit off a tee? How about allowing a substitute batter or not counting his out against his team? How about two bases if hit by a pitched ball or pitching a whiffle ball to him? There are many, many changes that could be effective. The measuring stick should be whether these changes for one player every two or three innings fundamentally alter the game being played. Look through these changes again and ask yourself if they do. In another pending lawsuit, Devlin v. Arizona Youth Soccer Association (AYSA), a 13-year-old met eligibility requirements by showing up for tryouts and was allowed on a soccer travel team. He paid his fee, got a card and uniform, and practiced with his team. This boy uses crutches and strikes the ball with a crutch or by pivoting on the crutches and swinging his foot against the ball. When the team showed up at a tournament, the officials told him and his coaches he would not be allowed to play. After the game, when his attorney told the league it had probably violated the ADA, the league responded by prohibiting him from practices. This sure looks like retaliation, which is also prohibited under the ADA. Again, use Anderson as a measure. Has this Arizona corn- Illinois Parks & Recreation * May/June 1996 * 19 he be penalized for the equivalent of high-kicking if his crutches rise above his waist? Regarding the risk, would his crutches injure someone more than a soccer shoe? League officials appear to be digging in and this dispute is likely to get ugly before it is resolved.
Other Issues If the league or sport is conducted by a private organization, such as a local sports association which uses public agency fields and courts, the league has the same obligation. Public schools and park and recreation agencies are prohibited from providing substantial support to organizations which do discriminate on the basis of disability. What's substantial support? It certainly includes allowing free or nominal rent for use of fields and courts. Does it include use at a full rental charge? That remains to be seen.
To protect the agency, and to have the secondary benefit of
reminding users of the need to comply with the ADA, many
agencies have adopted language for field use and facility request
forms. It can be as simple as:
Wait! Safety Is Important! More than 120 park districts and recreation departments in Illinois are part of a special recreation association, and can get assistance for this issue. Look to those with experience with kids with disabilities and avoid reinventing the wheel.
The Next Step Review your training requirements. Does your league or staff have access to sign language interpreters? Do you know where to go for an assessment of risk for a child with a disability? Will your volunteer coaches know how to attempt a change or accommodation? Do your registration people and the league volunteers understand the obligations regarding meeting essential requirements? Look at your facilities. Are fields and courts physically accessible to people with disabilities? Is parking adequate and the right size, and appropriately signed? Can a parent who uses a wheelchair get to the spectator area? If you provide portable toilets, is at least one accessible? Are locker rooms accessible? Know your league rules. Blind adherence to a national association rule which is discriminatory may be a problem for your agency as well as for the national association or league. For example, the American Softball Association (ASA) has recently changed a rule about the wearing of prosthetic devices by ball players. This forward movement will allow many to play without fear of penalty for violating an ASA rule. Don't be left behind here. Make sure your staff, the leaders of local sport associations, and coaches, know accessibility issues as well as they know safety. Make sport opportunities available to everyone. John N. McGovern, JD, CTRS, is the executive director of the Northern Suburban Special Recreation Association. 20 * Illinois Parks & Recreation * May/June 1996 |
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