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Wheelchair tennis a big hit in parks.


In 1976, Brad Parks Douglas Bradford (Brad) Park (born July 6, 1948 in Toronto, Ontario) was an NHL ice hockey player in the National Hockey League (NHL) and is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. He played for the New York Rangers, Boston Bruins and Detroit Red Wings.  hit a tennis ball from his wheelchair and a new sport was instantly born. Thanks to the early efforts of Parks, the first wheelchair tennis Wheelchair tennis is a sport that is played on a regulation tennis court, by people using specially designed wheelchairs. All pedestrian variations of tennis are, played, i.e. same-sex, doubles, mixed etc.  tournament champion and a tireless promoter of the sport, wheelchair tennis has since become the fastest growing of all sports played in wheelchairs. To meet this demand, park and recreation facilities are continually adding exciting wheelchair tennis programs to their roster.

At Patch Reef Park Tennis Center, located within the 55-acre Patch Reef Park in Boca Raton Boca Raton (bō`kə rətōn`), city (1990 pop. 61,492), Palm Beach co., SE Fla., on the Atlantic; inc. 1925. Boca Raton is a popular resort and retirement community that experienced significant industrial development in the 1970s and 80s. , Fla., the Elite Wheelchair Tennis Clinic has been a tremendous hit. With 17 hardcourts, the center is also home to the world's largest wheelchair tennis tournament, where more than 200 people from 22 countries recently competed for the 2006 USTA USTA United States Tennis Association
USTA United States Telecom Association
USTA United States Trotting Association
USTA United States Telephone Association
USTA United States Twirling Association
USTA United States Trademark Association
 National Hardcourt Wheelchair Championships.

"It's a very inspiring, very upbeat atmosphere at our wheelchair tennis clinic;' said Jim Tierney, Patch Reef Park Tennis Centers administrator. "We draw players from more than an hour away, which shows there is a need for these programs."

J.D. Varney, recreation superintendent for the City of Boca Raton, says wheelchair tennis has been a part of its programming for nearly 20 years because it "enhances the fabric of the community."

Rules are the same as in traditional tennis, except the player in a wheelchair is allowed two bounces of the ball and the second bounce may also occur outside the court. It can be played on any regular tennis court, with no modifications to rackets rackets

Game for two or four players with ball and racket on a four-walled court. Rackets is played with a hard ball in a relatively large court (approximately 9 × 18 m), unlike the related games of squash and racquetball.
 or balls.

In 2005, the US Open featured the inaugural US Open Wheelchair tennis competition. The event featured men's and women's draws of eight, including several of the highest-ranking wheelchair players in the world competing in singles and doubles.

Anyone who has watched tennis competitors in a wheelchair whack whack - According to arch-hacker James Gosling, to "...modify a program with no idea whatsoever how it works." (See whacker.) It is actually possible to do this in nontrivial circumstances if the change is small and well-defined and you are very good at glarking things from context.  the ball, nimbly nim·ble  
adj. nim·bler, nim·blest
1. Quick, light, or agile in movement or action; deft: nimble fingers. See Synonyms at dexterous.

2.
 wheel their chairs around the baseline and strike top-spin backhands high above their heads, knows that in a perfect world they would also command the same respect as their able-bodied brethren.

Sonja Peters, an internationally ranked Dutch wheelchair tennis player, sees a change. "A kid who had come to see [Andre] Agassi was standing next to the court watching us and he begged his mom to let him stay and watch us instead."
COPYRIGHT 2006 National Recreation and Park Association
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 2006, Gale Group. All rights reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company.

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Title Annotation:BRANCH/REGION NEWS
Author:McIntyre, Brendan
Publication:Parks & Recreation
Geographic Code:1USA
Date:Sep 1, 2006
Words:372
Previous Article:Leisure Research Symposium schedule announced.(BRANCH/REGION NEWS)(Calendar)
Next Article:Member receives 2006 Robert W. Crawford Achievement Prize.(The National Recreation Foundation )
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