Ohio University’s Four-Play! Quad Rugby student organization is sponsoring the second annual Four-Play! event on Feb. 28, a pay-to-play wheelchair rugby tournament that will raise money for quadriplegic athletic equipment and increase awareness about wheelchair accessibility in public places.
The sport of quadriplegic rugby has been gaining in popularity since the release of the 2005 film “Murderball,” which chronicled the U.S. quad rugby’s team rivalry with its Canadian counterpart and its involvement in the Paralympic Games in Athens, Greece.
The tournament will pit OU students, faculty and community members against the quick-wheeling skills of the Columbus Buckeye Blitz, Ohio’s only semi-professional quadriplegic wheelchair rugby team. Teams of four to six can sign up for the 28 available spots for $75. The fee includes four T-shirts, 30 minutes of court time playing three of the Blitz’s players, and a raffle ticket for various prizes.
To enter the tournament, participants can visit the signup table on the first floor of Baker Center on Jan. 27, Jan. 30, or Feb. 3, 10, 17 or 19. Or they can contact event coordinator Andrea Klusman at 513-289-3310 or ak309202@ohio.edu.
The tournament will take place from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 28, in the Grover Center Gymnasium, E112. Grover Center is located across Richland Avenue from the Convocation Center.
Tournament organizers are seeking to raise $4,000, the cost of a reinforced rugby wheelchair for the Columbus Buckeye Blitz. They also hope to exceed the total raised last year, $3,200.
--Jessica Alfrey
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