Wheelchair DanceSport

Wheelchair Dance

Senang Hati-Diah Larasati-Wheelchair Dance
Highest governing body	World DanceSport Federation WDSF
First played	1968 Sweden
Characteristics
Contact	yes
Team members	single competitors, doubles, or teams
Mixed gender	yes
Type	indoor
Equipment	Wheelchair
Venue	dance hall
Presence
Country or region	worldwide
Paralympic	1998

Wheelchair DanceSport is a partner dance competition and Dancesport where at least one of the dancers is in a wheelchair.

Wheelchair couple dances are for two wheelchair users or for one wheelchair user with a "standing" partner and include standard dances such as waltz, tango, Viennese waltz, slow foxtrot and quickstep and Latin American dances such as samba, cha-cha-cha, rumba, paso doble and jive. There are also formation dances for four, six or eight dancers.

Wheelchair dancing started in Sweden in 1968, originally for recreation or rehabilitation, with the first competition held in 1975. The first international competition was also held in Sweden, in 1977. Several regional and international competitions followed and the first World Championship was held in Japan in 1998. Since 1998, Wheelchair Dance Sport is governed by the International Paralympic Wheelchair Dance Sport Committee (IPWDSC), although it is not part of the paralympic program. The sport incorporates the rules of the World DanceSport Federation (WDSF).

athletes are placed into one of two classes:

Wheelchair dancing is a popular social and recreational activity, with participants in over 40 countries. The physical benefits of wheelchair dancing include the maintenance of physical balance, flexibility, range of motion, coordination and improved respiratory control. The psychological effects of ballroom dancing are social interaction and the development of relationships. For social dancers, it is an opportunity to engage in a fun and a friendly event with others. For competitors, it assists in the development of fair play, sportsmanship and communication skills. Wheelchair dancing is an activity that integrates the wheelchair user and able-bodied person.