Athletes a fan of largest wheelchair rugby tournament in the U.S.
Over the past few seasons, Spencer Larimore, Tracy Lewis and the rest of the Division II Boise Bombers have traveled to play in a wheelchair rugby tournament that’s new to them.
This year, they went with the eighth annual Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA) Wheelchair Rugby Invitational, which runs from Friday through Sunday at the University of Louisville Student Recreation Center in Louisville, Ky.
The team ended up as part of the largest wheelchair rugby tournament in the nation. This year’s field even bested that of the United States Wheelchair Rugby Association national tournament by four teams.
“This is the biggest tournament I’ve ever been to. I’ve actually never been at nationals. Usually we do more local tournaments. We did the Northwest and a tournament here and there. You’d go to Dallas or one East Coast tournament every once in awhile. But this year we’re like we wanted to measure up with more teams to be ranked — a more realistic ranking,” says Larimore, a 51-year-old Boise, Idaho, resident who has played on Boise’s team since it started 15 years ago. “… It’s a good mix where everybody’s going to come out of here with a better understanding of where you sit through their ranking for finals.”
The PVA invitational has come quite a way from when it started back in 2018 and was called the Code of Honor Invitational at the Shooter Indoor Sports Complex in Midlothian, Va., when it had just six teams.
Now, it’s up to 20 teams, with eight teams in Division I, six teams in Division II and another six teams in Division III, and crowns champions in each division. Those teams involve more than a handful of Paralympians, including 2024 U.S. Paralympians Chuck Aoki, Josh Wheeler, Sarah Adam, Mason Symons, Zion Redington, Eric Newby, Brad Hudspeth and Josh O’Neill, along with previous ones Joe Jackson, Scott Hogsett , Anthony McDaniel, Chuck Melton and Canadian Michael Whitehead and more.
Aoki, along with Wheeler, Adam, Symons and Redington, just helped lead the U.S. to a silver medal at the 2024 Paris Paralympics this past August and September. A University of Michigan club team player, Aoki’s team went 2-0 in Division I on Friday, including a win over Adam’s St. Louis Bombers. He likes having all the teams, the three divisions and the format.
“I think it is kind of special to have this many teams and this many levels. And I think we wanted to come because the competition is high. You know, it’s a good chance for us to test a lot of our developing players who are breaking out of the Division I level, like Jason Sandor,” Aoki says. “It’s really cool to come to something that’s been led by such a cool group of PVA that does such a great job bringing everybody together. And so, yeah, it’s a fun thing to get to be a part of. And yeah, to have this many teams is cool to have. Just the levels of play from Division I, all the way down to Division III, I think is really great for athletes at different levels who maybe don’t get exposed, particularly at the highest level, very often. So, it’s a really, really cool thing.”
Boise, meanwhile, had a rougher start, going 0-2 during Friday’s opening day. Larimore and Lewis each played on that first Boise team in 2010 and have stayed with them for the past 10-plus years. It’s been a fun and rewarding adventure for them.
While Larimore has stayed healthy, the 49-year-old Lewis is just happy to be back on the court. He injured his left shoulder last year from playing too much wheelchair rugby, pushing too much and not working out enough.
“I kind of trashed my shoulders,” says Lewis, who has a level C6-C7 injury after an Aug. 2, 1996, motor vehicle accident.
So, he spent a year working on his shoulders and focusing on a better gym routine. But Lewis also asked for help, relying on his parents, Lori Wheeler and Rob Wheeler, and daughter, Kasidi, a bit more. And it paid off. Now, he’s back on the court and has played in a handful of wheelchair rugby tournaments this year.
“I didn’t think I was going to be able to come out this year and get to the motel and be out on my own again and, you know, all that,” Lewis says. “So, I’ve had to rely on people more over this last year and I’m not used to that. I worked really hard to get my independence.”
Lewis definitely, though, plans on making it up to his daughter. It was her birthday on Friday, and she wanted him to stay in Boise. He went to the tournament, but he’s got a plan to get her a present while he’s away.
“She’s a little mad at me. She’s like, ‘You better get me something cool when you’re down there,’” Lewis says.
Eighth-Annual Paralyzed Veterans of America Rugby Invitational At University of Louisville Student Recreation Center
Friday, Feb. 14
Division I
WWAR Generals 57, TIRR Texans 31
Texas Stampede 58, WWAR Warriors 33
WWAR Generals 60, Lakeshore Demolition 25
Texas Stampede 56, DASA St. Louis Bombers 40
Ability360 Heat 61, Lakeshore Demolition 45
University of Michigan 56, DASA St. Louis Bombers 41
Ability360 Heat 63, TIRR Texans 43
University of Michigan 53, WWAR Warriors 37
Division II
WASA/CKRI Lightning 54, Portland Pounders 43
BORP High Fives’ Storm 58, Boise Bombers 54
Las Vegas High Rollers 49, Magee Eagles 42
Portland Pounders 49, Boise Bombers 47
Magee Eagles 47, WASA/CKRI Lightning 46
Division III
NEP Wildcats 45, Kansas City Revolution 34
Oscar Mike Militia 56, Grand Rapids Thunder 18
Kansas City Revolution 53, Ohio Buckeye Blitz 49
NEP Wildcats 54, Grand Rapids Thunder 29
MedStar NRH United 67, Ohio Buckeye Blitz 24
MedStar NRH United 43, Oscar Mike Militia 45