Opinion: Paralympics truly inspirational

INSPIRING: Parafed Bay of Plenty's adaptive surfing group. PHOTO/SUPPLIED

Talk Sport with BayTrust CoachForce Sport Development Officer Leanne Flanders and Executive Officer Ian McDonald

What an amazing opportunity and privilege to watch the recent coverage of the Rio Paralympics.

Our Paralympians are living proof that with a desire to achieve, the opportunity to be involved and the hard work to become great, anything is possible no matter what your ability.

If you were inspired by our Paralympians you will be delighted to know that para-sports are taking place in the Bay of Plenty and are always looking for more participants and support. Right now is a great time to get involved.

That's where Parafed Bay of Plenty comes in, with a newly-appointed CEO and CoachForce officer looking to develop sporting opportunities so you can have fun in a supportive and inclusive environment.

CoachForce Officer Leanne Flanders and CEO Ian McDonald form the Parafed Bay of Plenty team and are supported with a larger group of volunteers, sponsors, sports organisations and schools who make all of these opportunities possible.

Supporting sports such as wheelchair basketball, wheelchair rugby, powerchair football, para-equestrian, sailability, table tennis, Boccia, shooting, adaptive surfing, blind sports and more are part of Parafed Bay of Plenty's aim to develop further in our region.

Many of our members are taking part in competition, yet still have a fantastic social aspect for a lot of fun with the focus on inclusion in sport.

Events such as the Halberg Junior Disability Games and the Eve Rimmer Games are examples of competitive pathways for disabled athletes to showcase their abilities and take part in their sports in a larger sense.

Ultimately we hope this experience could lead to future Bay of Plenty Paralympians.

We would love to hear from anyone who wants to be part of this very rewarding sector of the community. Involvement in disabled sport may mean becoming a much needed volunteer to help run trainings or events, or taking part and having fun in your sport of interest.

We are always looking for sponsors to partner with for particular events and the running of sports.

Perhaps your organisation would like to take part in a sport such as wheelchair rugby as a corporate team building event - this is a fun way to help out and get involved.

For more information: www.parafedbop.co.nz, email leanne@parafedbop.co.nz or phone 027 PARAFED (7272 333)