More than 160 people with physical disabilities across Ireland are taking part in the Fitness Inclusion Games.<\/p>\n
Inspired by formats like CrossFit and Hyrox, today’s games will see participants take on adapted challenges testing strength and endurance.<\/p>\n
The games are hosted by the Irish Wheelchair Association and are taking place in the Sport Ireland National Indoor Arena.<\/p>\n
Now in their second year, the games are part of a broader project, which started as a pilot scheme in Drogheda in 2022.<\/p>\n
It is now a national project, with programmes running in Navan, Co Meath, Tipperary, Galway and across Dublin.<\/p>\n
The Irish Wheelchair Association said the event highlights the ongoing challenges faced by people with disabilities in accessing gyms, training and sport spaces, but also showcases the possibilities when barriers are removed.<\/p>\n
Minister for Disability Emer Higgins attended the games.<\/p>\n
Declan Hamilton from the IWA said the games are a result of a growing movement across the country.<\/p>\n
“These athletes are not just taking part, they are pushing boundaries, building confidence and showing what is possible when barriers are removed,” he said.<\/p>\n
Among the participants are June Elliot from Navan and Nathan Doherty from Dundalk.<\/p>\n
Nathan attributes the project to helping rebuild his fitness and his confidence, three years after losing his leg.<\/p>\n
“I started the Fitness Inclusion just before Christmas,” he said. “I go to SKF in Dundalk and it is really good. The coach there, Hannah, does something different with us every week. I really enjoy it.”<\/p>\n
June said that she never thought she would ever be training in a gym.<\/p>\n
“When IWA asked me to join the Fitness Inclusion Project, I thought they were joking. I was thinking what would I be able to do. But I use the weights and the bands, and I am already seeing a big difference since I started over a year ago,” she said.<\/p>\n
“I am able to do things that I never thought I’d be able to do like holding a laptop. That is a big thing for me. I find I am not coughing as much as I used to during the day. I like that it is making me fitter.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"More than 160 people with physical disabilities across Ireland are taking part in the Fitness Inclusion Games. Inspired…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":944894,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4322],"tags":[1630,105,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-944893","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fitness","8":"tag-fitness","9":"tag-health","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/116536085819417579","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/944893","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=944893"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/944893\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/944894"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=944893"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=944893"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=944893"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}