WHEELCHAIR TENNIS PLAYER HOPES TO BRING MORE RECOGNITION TO THE SPORT

Wheelchair basketball has been a well-known sport for decades. Wheelchair marathons and other such races also pop up regularly on ESPN.

However, many other sports in which disabled athletes participate are unknown to mainstream sports fans.

"One of the problems with wheelchair athletics is they don't have wide recognition," said Robby Sanders, who tours on the professional wheelchair tennis circuit. "We need to get out there so we can get more sponsors to help with the costs of tournaments."

Sanders, a Benton, Ill., native and Cape Girardeau resident, conducted a wheelchair tennis clinic Sunday at Universal Physique in Cape Girardeau.

An avid tennis player since the age of 9, Sanders, 26, had even served as a ball boy at professional tournaments. After he was paralyzed in a car accident seven years ago, however, it seemed his tennis days were over. But while being rehabilitated at a hospital in Chicago, he got his first exposure to wheelchair tennis when some players conducted an exhibition. Considering his affinity for the standard sport, his transition to mobile version of the game was logical.

While the sport has been around since 1977, when the first tournament was held in Los Angeles, it has increasingly become more popular with physically disabled athletes, Sanders said. It is even sanctioned for the United States Tennis Association, the national governing body for regular tennis. However, compared to some other wheelchair sports, it is obscure. "Even people with disabilities haven't heard of it," Sanders said.

He has worked to expand it popularity and helped to found a wheelchair tennis team while a student at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale.

The rules are identical to "able-bodied tennis," as Sanders calls it, except that two bounces are allowed instead of one. Also, a ball that hits a player's chair is considered dead.

The biggest difference for players is mobility as it is much harder for players to rapidly shift direction in wheelchairs. "If you can't get to the ball you can't hit it," Sanders said.

However, wheelchairs built for athletics are quite different than those made for standard everyday use and can compensate for some of the difficulty. Sanders' chair weighs half of what a standard chair does and also has only one front wheel instead of two. That design is also for increased maneuverability on the court.

Top cash awards for winning major tournaments are about $1,000. In the five years he has been on the professional circuit, Sanders has garnered about $5,000 in prize money, two new wheelchairs and numerous other awards such as rackets and equipment.

Playing tennis has also given Sanders a chance to travel and see the country.

"Before I got hurt and started playing tennis I had only been to about four or five states," Sanders said. "Now I've been to 37 states and hope to go play in Australia this year."

The comradeship on the tour is one of his favorite parts of the sport. While competition is serious, it is also friendlier than in wheelchair basketball in which he has also participated.

Competition at tournaments is split in different divisions depending on the skill level and seriousness of the disabilities of players. That, Sanders said, helps keep it fun for everyone.

"It doesn't matter what level of player you are," he said. "At tournaments you get some playing time against even competition."