CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - More than 80 athletes who participated in adapted varsity sports at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign between 1948 and 1976 will finally receive varsity letters this spring.
The former competitors - archers, basketball players, swimmers, and track and field athletes - are returning to campus May 7-8 to participate in "Breaking Barriers," a program organized in their honor by the Division of Rehabilitation-Education Services and the College of Applied Life Studies. Capping off a weekend of activities for the former athletes and their families will be the All Sports Award Banquet for Adapted Varsity Athletics, at 6:30 p.m. on May 8 in Huff Hall, 1206 S. Fourth St., Champaign. The varsity letters will be awarded to the former adapted-sports pioneers - and to current student-athletes - by the Division of Intercollegiate Athletics.
Under the leadership of Timothy J. Nugent, Illinois became the first post-secondary institution in the nation to provide a support-service program for students with disabilities; that program included opportunities to participate in competitive adapted sports. Nearly three decades later, in 1977, Illinois became the nation's first university to award varsity letters to athletes in wheelchairs.
"Unfortunately, those who graduated between 1948 and 1976 did not receive the varsity 'I' in recognition of their distinction as national - and frequently international - caliber participants in disability sports," said Brad Hedrick, director of DRES. "However, this year that will change. The university, the college and the division will finally have the opportunity to celebrate the athletic achievements of these former student athletes and their substantial contributions to the advancement of disability sports."
In addition to pursing their personal, athletic goals in a wide range of sports, many of the alumni played instrumental roles in forming and administering the national governing bodies of disability sports - typically, "in relative anonymity," Hedrick said.
"These disability-sport pioneers crafted the rules, hosted and participated in some of the first national competitions, while raising much if not all of the funds needed to underwrite their athletic endeavors," he said. "They periodically faced discrimination that today would seem unimaginable, while competing in the most humble of venues."
The theme of the award program, "Breaking Barriers," is fitting, he said, because it "truly exemplifies the spirit of these men and women at the university level and nationwide, as many achieved remarkable success as athletes and as individuals. Illinois' leadership in disability programs and services has been instrumental in overcoming not only athletic barriers but also those related to attitudes, architecture and academics for all persons with disabilities."
More information about the event and former athletes who will be honored is available on the Web at www.rehab.uiuc.edu, or by contacting DRES's Office of Campus Life, 217-333-4606.