How To Play Wheelchair Tennis Video

Play a tennis match from a wheelchair. Learn tips and techniques for playing wheelchair tennis in this adaptive sports video.

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Wheelchair position very important
Players get 2 bounces to return shots
5th wheel in back supports serving motion

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Mike Schlappi is a consummate athlete involved in Wheel Chair Tennis, Wheel Chair Basketball, Adaptive Snowmobiling, Hand cycling and many other adaptive sports and pastimes. He is Four-Time Paralympic Medalist in USA Men's Wheelchair Basketball, Two-Time World Champion in Wheelchair Basketball, Olympic Torch Bearer for the 2002 Winter Olympic Games and Monaco Placard Bearer for Opening ceremonies. Honored by the State of Utah as one of its Top 50 Athletes of the Century. Mike is the only wheelchair basketball player in the USA to be a member of the past four Paralympic teams. Mike was honored by his peers as a member of the all-world wheelchair basketball team. Mike is also a tennis champion, winning the U.S. Open in the "A" Division in 1990 and 1994.Mike is an outstanding motivational speaker and talks to associations, public and private corporations throughout the USA.

MIKE SCHLAPPI: Well, in wheelchair tennis, we have the same strokes. You have a forehand; ball is over here. You have a backhand; the ball is over here. On either forehand or backhand, you might have a top spin or you might have a slice. You also have a serve, which obviously you throw the ball up and you are going to hit the ball up here. And occasionally, we will hit those shots during the regular match, as well during the rallies. Sometimes you got to lean. Sometimes you are out of position. Sometimes your chair is in the way. Chair positioning is extremely important. And again the only the real, real major difference in wheelchair tennis is we get two bounces if we need it. So let's say the first bounce we can't reach it, we can back up and hit the ball on a second bounce. That is legal, but we don't have to use two bounces. You know the game really isn't a lot different than able-bodied tennis. Everything is not perfect right in your power zone. You have to adapt. You have to be an athlete. Sometimes you have to block or use your coordination, and that happens a lot in wheelchair tennis because we are not as quick to get out of the way of the ball. And it is not uncommon at all that we are hitting shots, you know, like this, or like this, or but an ideal world it would be to set up and power stroke it, but we are just athletes. Many of these players were players on their feet and they are incredibly good, and also they have an accident or lost a foot or something. So when they get into a chair, they've already got the stokes down. Once they learned to use their wheelchair as their feet, then they become incredible players. These chairs are different. They are not the kind of chairs that you see in the mall where somebody is pushing around. These are sport chairs. The wheels slant out to help you turn quicker. There are roller blade wheels on the front. A top tennis chair might only have one wheel on the front to make the front end really quick and to get all these out of your way, so it is not in your way as you are trying to hit strokes. We have a fifth wheel. So that when you really kick back and you want to hit a serve, you are not worried about going over on your head. You can just get right back here and come forward, and that fifth wheel helps. I'm seat belted in to give me stability and--okay another tennis ball, because you know, we don't want to chase the ball in the corner, like somebody like to carry one on their pocket. We will just carry the ball in our or in our spokes or right here under our leg, but we just love the game. It's a good excuse to get out of the house and not do the dishes.

How to Play Wheelchair Tennis Video

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