Wheelchair Dancesport to debut at Colorado Star Ball
Author - Richard Booth
May 14, 2002

WHEELCHAIR DANCESPORT TO DEBUT AT COLORADO STAR BALL!

The Colorado Star Ball is proud to share with you, the world of wheelchair dancesport. In 2002 we introduced wheelchair dancing as a special exhibition. Tthe Colorado Star Ball in Denver, Colorado is proud to present Wheelchair Dancesport as a competitive event. This new division is scheduled for Sunday afternoon and will include solos and formations in addition to single dance freestyles.

"Although I love acting and singing, dancing gives my heart wings and lets me soar". The fact that the author relies on a wheelchair for mobility is irrelevant. Who is the author? She is Teri Westerman, Miss Wheelchair Colorado 2000, singer, actress, and dancer. Ms. Westerman and her partner were greeted by a standing ovation at the conclusion of their special performance...a tango...last year. Along with Ms. Westerman, the Colorado Star Ball and has made a commitment to creating dance opportunities for disabled dancers. While relatively new in the United States, Wheelchair Dancesport has been actively growing in Europe for many years

. Ballroom dancing, square dancing, line dancing, ballet and jazz are all actively pursued by wheelchair users.
. There are ballroom competitions in Europe devoted almost exclusively to wheelchair dancing. There is one in Holland in October. The first international competition in wheelchair dance took place in Sweden in 1997; the first World Championships were organized in Japan in 1998.
. Today, more than 5000 dancers (4000 wheelchair users and 1500 non-disabled partners) practice wheelchair dance on both a recreational or competitive level in more than 40 countries.
. Two of the large groups actively promoting wheelchair dance are the IPC Wheelchair Dance Sport Committee and Wheelchair Sports, USA.

The simple act of typing "wheelchair dancing" into the search engines of Yahoo, Alta Vista, MSN and others produced thousands of references on the web. In fact, it quickly became apparent that physical limitations are not a barrier for anyone who wants to dance. Pictures stir the imagination and the activity is so widespread, one wonders why wheelchair dance is not more visible.

We hope that you are intrigued enough to want to see what's happening in your part of the country. Here are a few organizations and web sites to get you started:

www.jbdf.or.jp
www.wsusa.org
www.parasports.net
www.paralympic.org
www.rockind.on.ca/wheellines
www.gggreg.com/dancingwheels
www.fullradiusdance.org

Cleveland Ballet Dancing Wheels
Cleveland, OH
216-621-3273

Dance Ability/Joint Forces Dance Co.
Eugene, OR
541-342-3273

PHAMLy
Physically Handicapped Amateur
Musical Actors League
Denver, CO 303-575-0005

Full Radius Dance
Atlanta, GA
404-724-9663

Axis Dance Company
Oakland, CA
510-625-0110

Light Motion
Seattle, WA
206-328-0818

Ballet Arts Theatre
Denver, CO
303-825-7570