Brazil gear up to debut in wheelchair rugby world tournament

In the Tokyo Paralympic Games, only two sports had no representatives from Brazil: basketball and rugby. For both, however, the Paris cycle started off well, with the two national teams qualified for the world championships. This will be Brazil’s first time for rugby, in the eighth edition of the event.

The competition will take place in Velje, Denmark, between October 8 and 17. The unprecedented spot in the global tournament was secured following the third place in the Championship of the Americas, held in Medellin, Colombia, in March. The world championship is the first step towards Paris, since the winner gets an early place in the games. For Brazil, going to France would be historic, as their only Paralympic participation took place in 2016, when the games were hosted by Rio de Janeiro.

The sport

Wheelchair rugby is played by both men and women, with no gender division, with quadriplegia or a high degree of physical-motor impairment. The competitors are divided into seven classes, ranging from 0.5 to 3.5, varying every half point. The lower the category number, the greater the disability. The combined classes of the athletes on the court (four on each team) must not exceed eight.

The game has four eight-minute periods and takes place on a court with basketball dimensions—15 meters wide by 28 meters long. To score, athletes must cross their opponents’ goal line with both wheels of their chair as well as the ball in their hands.