Youth to compete in wheelchair basketball tournament

Synergy Adaptive Athletics, a new agency dedicated to adaptive sports in DuPage County, is hosting a youth wheelchair basketball tournament from 1 to 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28, at the NEDSRA gym next to Club Fitness, 1776 W. Centennial Drive, Addison.

Synergy, formed by a collaboration between the Northeast DuPage Special Recreation Association and the Western DuPage Special Recreation Association, is holding the tournament in preparation for the national wheelchair basketball tournament April 16 to 19 in Louisville, Kentucky.

Saturday's tournament includes eight teams from the North Shore, Western suburbs and Chicago that will compete a round-robin format. Admission is free, and concessions will be available. A tennis ball raffle toss with a grand prize of $100 will be held.

Synergy manages two junior level teams. The Preparatory team for ages 12 and younger plays on an 8.5-foot high basket and uses a smaller ball. The JV team for ages 13 to 21 plays with regulation-size basketballs and 10-foot baskets. Nearly all of the rules are identical to NCAA regulations, with a few exceptions. The most significant rule is that you must dribble the ball after touching your chair's wheels twice.

Chairs are expected to make contact, however, no recklessness or holding wheelchairs is permitted.

Synergy Adaptive Athletics' mission is to allow people with physical disabilities and visual impairments the opportunity to live life to its fullest. For information, contact Coach Adam Kramer at (630) 384-8542 or AdamK@synergy.com.