About Sporting Wheelies
Making active lives possible for every Queenslander with a disability
Our Purpose
We make active lives possible.
Vision
Every Queenslander with a disability will have opportunities to live a more active and healthy life.
Mission
Engage, empower and develop people with a disability to live a more healthy, active and fulfilled life of their choosing.
Our Story
Sporting Wheelies has its origins in the 1960s as a small sports club within the Paraplegic Welfare Association in Queensland. Sport for people with spinal cord injuries was gaining in popularity as a result of the first Paralympic Games in Rome in 1960, and the 'Queensland Sports and Social Club for the Disabled' played an active role in promoting disability sport and raising funds for Queensland athletes selected for national and international competitions.
In 1977, the club became a registered charity in its own right as the Paraplegic and Quadriplegic Sport Association of Queensland and by the following year, the Association had extended its programs and services to include people with physical disabilities other than spinal cord injuries, including people with vision impairment. The decision was made to change to the current name to reflect the Association's broader mission and capitalise on the popular term 'sporting wheelies' to describe wheelchair athletes.
Today, we are widely recognised as a leader in the field of sport and healthy activity for people with a disability by national bodies such as Sport Australia and Paralympics Australia.
Support Our Mission
Sporting Wheelies exists to break down barriers and create opportunities for people with a disability to live active, healthy, and connected lives. But we can't do it without you. Your support helps us deliver vital programs, services, and pathways that change lives every day.