SA wheelchair rugby returns to global stage, eyes 2028 Paralympics

JOHANNESBURG - After a decade-long absence from the global stage, the South African Wheelchair Rugby national team is making a powerful comeback with its sights set on the 2028 Los Angeles Paralympic Games.

The last time the SA WCR national team competed internationally was at the 2015 Wheelchair Rugby World Challenge held in London.

“South Africa Wheelchair Rugby, over the last years, focused its energy on the development of wheelchair rugby in South Africa. The last event South Africa Wheelchair Rugby competed in was in London 2015,” said SA Wheelchair Rugby Administrator, Victor Buitendag.

As part of their qualification journey, the national team will compete at the WWR European Division C Championship, scheduled to take place from 9–12 October 2025 at the Skien Fritidspark multi-purpose stadium in Skien, Norway.

“A group of 21 athletes were selected to attend a High-Performance alignment camp at the beginning of the year. From this camp, 12 players were identified to form a training squad. The training squad has been training together weekly, and more recently, the squad was narrowed down to 10 players who will compete in Norway in October 2025,” explained Buitendag.

Wheelchair Rugby, also known as Murderball or Quad Rugby, is the only mixed-gender full-contact sport at the Paralympic Games.

“At the Paralympic level, wheelchair rugby is only for the more severely physically disabled, quadriplegics or individuals with an impairment in all four limbs. But as a non-Paralympic option, wheelchair rugby also caters for other physical disabilities in the wheelchair rugby 5s format.”

The sport is a fast-paced, full-contact team discipline open to all genders, combining elements of rugby, basketball, and handball. The aim is simple: carry the ball across the opponent’s try line to score points.

Players use specially designed wheelchairs with reinforced frames and bumpers to navigate the court and make contact with opponents.

“South Africa is currently the only country in Africa competing internationally. Previous performances in the Oceania zone were poor, mainly due to extreme travel distances and athlete fatigue.”

Recently, the team was rezoned from the Asia-Oceania Conference into Europe Division C, where they will face Norway, Finland, Ireland, and Austria.

“The rezoning from the Asia-Oceania Zone carries many advantages. Not only is it more cost-effective to compete in Europe, but it also improves athlete performance due to the benefits of similar time zones and shorter flight durations to Europe,” Buitendag added.

Since its debut as a full medal sport at the 2000 Sydney Paralympic Games, wheelchair rugby has grown to include 30 countries in international competition and many more developing programmes worldwide.

“Wheelchair rugby is possibly one of the most expensive sports in the world. Funding to support the team is always welcome. Alternatively, give the team a shout on Facebook, or watch the games on YouTube.”

If the team performs successfully at the WWR European Division C Championship in Norway, they will progress to European Division B in 2026, just one league tier away from competing for Paralympic qualification.