'I love the intensity of the game': Dozens of students compete in wheelchair basketball tournament
WEST PHILADELPHIA - Dozens of young wheelchair basketball players are in Philadelphia for the weekend participating in the 25th annual Katie Kirlin Junior Wheelchair Basketball Tournament. They’re all playing for a shot in the national tournament.
Forget the NBA, the wheelchair student athletes should be making the SportsCenter Top 10 Highlights.
"I was nine when I found the sport, so I’ve been playing for about six years," athlete Caroline Fitzpatrick stated.
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Fitzpatrick is a 15-year-old student athlete and she’s competing in the weekend’s 25th annual Katie Kirlin Junior Wheelchair Tournament.
It’s a tournament that has been held in honor or Katie Kirlin, a young athlete who became paralyzed from cancer in 1987 and died a few years later. The event encourages Philadelphia-area youth to take part in wheelchair sports.
Fitzpatrick says the sport is fast-paced and a lot to learn, at first. "It’s definitely scary, at first. Really intense! I wasn’t used to it, but I have amazing teammates, so I got into it really quick."
Joe and Ro are Katie’s parents and they started the organization and tournament, run by the Philadelphia Parks and Rec Department, to honor Katie’s achievements in the sport. They can’t believe how long it has lasted.
"It’s amazing because when I first started this up, in our wildest dreams, we never thought it would be this successful," Joe Kirlin stated.
The tournament is a qualifier for the national championship later in the year, and the athletes take it very seriously.
"I just love the intensity of the game and I like the connections that I can build from it," Fitzpatrick explained.
Those connections are what, she says, really make the sport so special. "I never really thought that I’d be playing a sport like this and it’s just amazing that stuff like this exists so we can have the same chances as everyone else."
Anyone wishing to participate or interested in donating can find more information at Philadelphia Park and Rec website or at Katie's Komets website, here.