Disabled people must be encouraged to participate in sport – Conway

Fine Gael Clare Senator and Seanad Spokesperson on Disability, Martin Conway, has said that disabled people must be helped and encouraged to take part in sport and physical activity. Senator Conway has accepted an invitation to join the steering committee of CARA Adapted Physical Activity Centre, and was speaking ahead of his first meeting with the group which is taking place today (Friday) in Killarney.

“I was delighted to be asked by CARA Adapted Physical Activity Centre to contribute to their significant work in the area of participation by people with disabilities in sport and physical activity. Ireland is now an international world leader in the area of Adapted Physical Activity (APA) and IT Tralee has recently become the first third level institution in the world to receive a UNESCO Chair in inclusive physical education. CARA has played a huge role in this by setting international best practice and standards for access to sport for people with disabilities.

“People with disabilities in Ireland are seven times more likely to experience restrictions in accessing physical activity and sport than non-disabled people, and are four times more likely to be inactive than people without disabilities. CARA’s key objective is to encourage people with disabilities to lead active healthy lifestyles at a level of their choice, and I strongly believe their vision should be promoted and supported.

“CARA runs a range of incredible programmes through the year, aimed at facilitating the participation of people with disabilities in sport. This includes Surf2Heal, a five-day surfing camp for children with autism, and CampAbilities, a sport and recreation camp for children with vision impairments. These type of programmes can make a massive difference to the children involved.

“Research suggests that physical activity increases the physical and mental wellbeing of people with disabilities and reduces secondary conditions such as obesity, osteoporosis, diabetes, contractures and the need for surgery.

“I commend the work of the CARA Centre and the IT Tralee in seeking to promote participation of persons with a disability in sport and physical activity and I look forward to working with them in the future.”

ENDS