Photo courtesy of Timothy Brown
A competitor in The Hartford Nationals in 2022.
The Hartford Nationals, a weeklong national sport championship event for athletes with a physical disability, visual impairment and/or intellectual disability, is coming back to Hoover for a second year at the end of this week.
More than 400 athletes with disabilities and coaches are expected to participate in the competitions, clinics, educational sessions and social opportunities on July 12-18. The sports contested include archery, para powerlifting, paratriathlon, shooting, swimming, track and field, and wheelchair tennis.
The city of Hoover and Lakeshore Foundation are key sponsors. Track and field events and wheelchair tennis will take place at Spain Park High School, while there will be shooting at the Finley Center, archery at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium, adaptive boxing and powerlifting at the Lakeshore Foundation, swimming at the Birmingham CrossPlex and a paratriathlon at Oak Mountain State Park.
The opening ceremony and parade of athletes is scheduled from 5 to 7:30 p.m. on Monday, July 15 at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium.
This is the 67th year for The Hartford Nationals, which is organized by Move United, a national adaptive sports organization.
Athletes who compete at this national event had to qualify through one of more than 30 sanctioned competitions that previously took place across the country throughout the Move United member network. In addition, this national competition has been a stepping stone for many athletes to progress and compete at an international level, including the Paralympic Games.
“With the 2024 Summer Paralympic Games in Paris just around the corner and the return of the Paralympics to the U.S. in 2028, many of the athletes competing here could very well represent Team USA at one of those upcoming competitions,” Move United Executive Director Glenn Merry said in a prepared statement.
Representatives from several U.S. national governing bodies will be on site to assist with classification, clinics and other activities.
Select athletes will be surprised with custom-fit adaptive sports equipment, and one athlete will be selected to receive The Hartford’s Human Achievement Award, given to an athlete, nominated by their peers, who advocates for the adaptive sports movement and inspires others as a role model. That award recipient will receive a $2,500 training/travel grant to further his or her athletic pursuits in adaptive sports.
“We are on a mission to increase participation in adaptive sports by making competitions, local events and equipment more accessible to youth and adult athletes,” said Claire Burns, The Hartford’s chief marketing and communications officer. “Adaptive athletes pay approximately 15 times more for equipment than non-adaptive athletes, and we are committed to helping remove cost as a barrier to participation.”
In addition to the city of Hoover and Lakeshore Foundation, other organizations providing support for The Hartford Nationals include the Birmingham Visitors and Convention Bureau and the Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham. Champion Sports Medicine, Grandview Medical Center and Aspire Sports Institute will provide on-site medical services and support.
Here is the competition schedule and a few other events:
SATURDAY, JULY 13
TIME EVENT LOCATION
7:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.Junior field and jumps competition Spain Park H.S.
7:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.Adults long jump and high jump Spain Park H.S.
9 a.m. – noon Wheelchair tennis tournament Spain Park H.S.
1:30 p.m. – 7 p.m. Wheelchair tennis tournament Spain Park H.S.
2 p.m. – 7 p.m. Junior Throws & Jumps Competition Spain Park H.S.
SUNDAY, JULY 14
7:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Track competition Spain Park H.S.
7:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Open (adults) shot put and discus Spain Park H.S.
9 a.m. – noon Wheelchair tennis tournament Spain Park H.S.
1:30 p.m. – 7 p.m. Wheelchair tennis tournament Spain Park H.S.
2:30 p.m. – 7 p.m. Track competition Spain Park H.S
MONDAY, JULY 15
7:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. Track competition Spain Park H.S.
10 a.m.–11:30 a.m. Wheelchair tennis clinic Spain Park H.S.
11 a.m.–11:30 a.m. The Hartford gifting moment Spain Park H.S.
3 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. Four sport clinics (wheelchair, fencing, etc.) Finley Center
5 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. Parade of athletes and welcome ceremony Hoover Met Stadium
TUESDAY, JULY 16
8 a.m. – 11 a.m. Paratriathlon competition Oak Mountain State Park
9 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. Swimming clinic 1 Lakeshore Foundation
9 a.m. – noon Shooting competition preliminaries Finley Center
10 a.m. –11:30 a.m. Adaptive boxing clinic Lakeshore Foundation
11 a.m.–12:30 p.m. Swimming clinic 2 (*Repeat of clinic 1) Lakeshore Foundation
3:30 p.m. – 6 p.m. Powerlifting competition (rookie/nextgen) Lakeshore Foundation
6 p.m. – 8 p.m. Powerlifting competition (elite and legends) Lakeshore Foundation
1:30 p.m. – 5 p.m. Shooting competition preliminaries Finley Center
3:30 p.m. – 5 p.m. Practice session 2 – swimming Lakeshore Foundation
6 p.m. – 8 p.m. Lakeshore Foundation social Lakeshore Foundation
7 p.m. – 8 p.m. Para-college recruiting showcase Lakeshore Foundation
WEDNESDAY, JULY 17
8 a.m. – noon Swim competition – short course Birmingham CrossPlex
8:30 a.m. – 10 a.m. Shooting competition finals Finley Center
10:30 a.m.– noon Shooting competition finals Finley Center
4 p.m. – 8 p.m. Swim competition – short course Birmingham CrossPlex
THURSDAY, JULY 18
8 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Swim competition – long sourse Birmingham CrossPlex
8 a.m. – 1 p.m. Archery competition Hoover Met Stadium
6 p.m. – 9 p.m. Closing dinner celebration Finley Center
For more information about The Hartford Nationals, visit thehartfordnationals.org.
