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Paralympic medalist and World Games record holder Sandy Hanebrink joins us to talk about her journey from St. Louis to the 1996 games in Atlanta. We discuss how the treatment of Paralympic athletes has progressed and where more investment needs to be made in athletes with disabilities.
You can find Sandy at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandy-hanebrink-otr-l-24432029
To find out more about the Carvan for Disability Justice and Freedom: https://thedisabilitycaravan.com
Full transcript available at:
Michelle Bishop:
Oh, God. Okay. Are we ready, Jack?
Jack Rosen:
Ready as we’ll ever be.
Michelle Bishop:
Oh, that’s scary and not at all comforting. *Laughs* Okay, give me a sec.
Jack Rosen:
Today we’re sitting down with Sandy Hanebrink, who is executive director of Touch the Future. She’s a occupational therapist and has worked with the Neuro-Abilities Advisory Committee for the United Nations G3ict, which is under the Convention for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. She’s an accessibility expert and she is also a Paralympian.
Jack Rosen:
Sandy, do you want to introduce yourself?
Sandy Hanebrink:
Hey, it’s great to be here with you guys. I think you pretty much covered it, Jack. I am Sandy Hanebrink, I am all those things he said, and I’m just happy to be here with you guys today.
Michelle Bishop:
Sandy, thank you so much. We’re excited to have you here. Actually, you have such an amazing list of credentials I’ve now thought of like five different podcast episodes we could interview you for on different topics, but this one is actually our Olympic special, so I was wondering if you could start by telling us a little bit about your history with the Paralympics and how you got involved.
Sandy Hanebrink:
So actually I got involved back in the glory days in the ’80s when rehab was kind of exploding and custom equipment and things were exploding. And I was a patient at St. Mary’s Rehab in St. Louis and was introduced to an adaptive sports program at the Jewish Community Center Association. It was an adaptive fitness program that had racquetball and whatever type that, and that was my first introduction to some of the guys who were doing disabled sports. So I learned about wheelchair basketball and wheelchair tennis and racquetball during my time in that program and started competing with the local wheelchair sports program in St. Louis, as well as playing tennis. And so I got introduced because I was invited to be part of a development team for Team USA to the Pan American Games in Venezuela. And so we competed in Venezuela as part of the Team USA and got a gold medal in wheelchair basketball. The next year I played in the U.S. Open in the Quad A division for wheelchair tennis, and I beat the guys. So I kind of caught the tennis bug. And then I started learning more about different sports and competing in different events and trying different wheelchair sports events because St. Mary’s sponsored many wheelchair sports teams. So they had people doing road races and track and field, and they had a wheelchair softball team, of course wheelchair basketball, and then tennis.
Sandy Hanebrink:
So that’s where I got my start. And then after I went to occupational therapy school, I actually moved to South Carolina where my parents were. And part of what I did while I was going to school was start a wheelchair sports program and get involved with the regional wheelchair games, the state games that were happening, which was then called the Southeastern Wheelchair Games. And that’s when I started trying different sports and did field events and competed in swimming. I went on to win the National Wheelchair Athletic Association is what it was called at the time, the female athlete of the year. Got invited out to Paralympic training camps, which at that time swimming and field were out at Sacramento State where they were doing just at the infancy… Rory Cooper, who’s at University of Pittsburgh, had just started the research into elite athleticism for Paralympians. And so part of those training camps, we were part of some of the initial studies on what form and technique and endurance and oxygen capacity of people with paralysis and different disabilities and things like that and how it impacted things. So kind of in the infancy of what is now what I call the modern Paralympics.
Sandy Hanebrink:
And then I competed in the World Games for swimming and field events and got silver medal at swimming in Worlds, continued to compete at national level. I actually still have the national records for shot put discus and javelin, and a couple of swimming events which will be forever because nationally we used to do yards and not meters, and now all Paralympic events are meters in the U.S. as well, so those will never go away. So that’s pretty exciting. And then because of my qualifying in attending the Paralympic sports camps, I made Team USA, competed in the trials, and then actually made the team for Atlanta Paralympics in ’96 for both field and swimming. But unfortunately when they restructured the games, they didn’t have all the classifications and they combined like I’m an incomplete quadriplegic, so my class was… All the quadriplegic females were lumped together with two different classes of paraplegics. So I could have done prelims, but there was no way I was going to make it to finals competing against people two classes ahead of me. So I competed in swimming and got a bronze medal at the Atlanta Paralympic Games, and then continued to compete for a while until that life thing called work happened and then started working. And then I did more with coaching, youth development programs, and wheelchair sports programs, and hosting events.
Michelle Bishop:
Sandy, first and most importantly, you’re from St. Louis? Because I’m from St. Louis, and I see now why our producer Jack did not mention that to me before we started filming this episode so that I didn’t spend the entire episode talking to you about toasted ravioli, which is-
Sandy Hanebrink:
Exactly
Michelle Bishop:
Right?
Sandy Hanebrink:
St. Louis pizza and toasted rav. You got to have it.
Michelle Bishop:
Right? We could do a whole episode on that. We should. We should do a St. Louis episode. We can go, we can record there live, and we’ll do it from an Imo’s. But sorry, all that aside, I mean congratulations. Your career sounds amazing and I can’t believe you’re an actual Olympic medalist. Like that blows my mind, and thank you just for representing our country at the Paralympics. Sorry, the Olympics make me really patriotic in a way that usually only elections can. But that’s an incredible story, just thank you for joining us. And I think Jack had another question for you.
Jack Rosen:
Sandy, so before we started this interview you were also talking about some of the challenges you faced when you were involved in the Paralympics, that they didn’t really invest in their athletes at the time. Do you want to talk about that a little and how things have changed?
Sandy Hanebrink:
Yeah, I think it’s kind of the evolution of disabled sports and Paralympic sport was back in the ’80s when you started seeing more and more countries participating in the Paralympics. You saw the rehab centers as another way to improve the quality of life of people with disabilities, sponsoring adaptive sports programs and Paralympic competitive teams. You saw leagues and stuff spreading across the country. But as an individual who’s competing back then, you were on your own to fundraise for all your equipment and training and that unless you happen to be part of one of these few wheelchair sports programs that existed out there, and they maybe had some team chairs. Or like some of my first equipment, my throwing chair actually, we made, I had a tool and die shop in town make for me.
Sandy Hanebrink:
And a lot of the equipment was evolving from where wheelchairs were now custom for every day. My first wheelchair when I first became paralyzed was an ENJ folding chair. And then by getting involved in the adaptive sports program that I talked about, I was introduced to custom chairs and sports chairs. And back then our everyday chair was also our basketball chair. Very few people had a piece of equipment for different sports, other than racing. That’s when the Eagle Sports Chairs had evolved with, at that time was still four wheel racing chairs, and just starting with the three wheel racing chairs that were much shorter and not as aerodynamic and not as much technology into it and innovations and engineering that we see today where BMW even makes custom molded wheelchairs for our Paralympic racers and stuff. But in the beginning you funded yourself, so sometimes the best athletes didn’t go, but the athletes who could fundraise or had a program backing them got to go.
Sandy Hanebrink:
When you made a national team, it’s much like Paralympics now and the Olympics where the national team coach and support staff are named. But like in gymnastics we were talking about earlier, you’ll see there’s the head coach but then you see the other coaches for the athletes are there. The athletes don’t have to just listen to the head coach that doesn’t really know them and things like that. Well when I went to Worlds with swimming, I didn’t know the coach or the team leaders and so they would make tips and stuff, but you’re kind of on your own to do your training and be prepared because you didn’t train with… The teams were named and you left, you didn’t have time to practice together and train like they do now. You had a couple weeks kind of thing. And again, it was like you had to fundraise. So I would hold fundraising events and sell t-shirts and do things like that to raise the money to be able to go to competitions and then to go to the Paralympics and that you had to buy your own uniforms and everything. There was fees and stuff, and you actually contributed to support the coaches and team leaders that you didn’t know.
Sandy Hanebrink:
Well, that changed after the Atlanta Games and the lawsuits that went through that changed to where the USOC now is the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic. And so you started seeing the evolution of more camps and stuff at the USOC and that, and now where there are resident athletes, and wheelchair athletes or other disabled athletes now are also professional athletes just like our peer Olympians. And at the last Olympics for the first time the Paralympians receive the same financial compensation for medal counts. The game sites, if a country hosts the Olympics, they have to host the Paralympics. There’s been a whole evolution because that wasn’t always the case. And then the medals and the clothes and the regalia and stuff that, even at the Atlanta Olympic Games the Paralympians we didn’t get anything that was even comparable. But now Team USA is Team USA, Olympic and Paralympian, which is a beautiful thing.
Sandy Hanebrink:
But with those changes it’s been a huge improvement for elite athletes. But with everything there’s a yin and a yang. It seems like some of the developmental programs aren’t there that were once there, and some of the state games and regional games you don’t see as many of that I’m aware of. I know in our area that there once were, and the size of the games aren’t as big. Because at the state games it was a combination of recreational, emerging and elite athletes because that’s where you learned about the different sports and you kind of learned techniques and strategies, and you learned about the national team and how to be a part of national teams. You learned about Paralympic trials and classification and all the different components that go with Paralympic sports.
Michelle Bishop:
It’s fascinating to me just how much it’s evolved from what you’ve described. It’s just the Paralympics have come so far, it’s really incredible, in a really a fairly short period of time. I mean what you’re describing was not that long ago, but it strikes me that you talked about how state and regional games seem to be on the decline, and I’m wondering if you have thoughts about how we could get more disabled youth involved in sports?
Sandy Hanebrink:
Yeah, I think it’s critical to start… We’re starting to see more and more facilities and infrastructure in place since the ADA, of course it’s been 34 years and we’re just now seeing adaptive playgrounds and access, better access to gyms and training facilities like fitness clubs, tracks, being able to park and have a route to a track and things like that. You’re seeing more and more in the media. Some of the national governing bodies are much more advanced and inclusive than others. Like local swim meets, if they’re part of U.S. Swimming, they can compete at their neighborhood swim club. Individual sports it’s easy to do, but then you’re always competing alongside your non-disabled peers, but against the clock. It’s still critical to have those competitions where you’re in a heat with people with your own classification and that.
Sandy Hanebrink:
So I think some of the change happened just with the changes in our healthcare paradigms and rehab and how long people are part of rehab facilities in order to be in that community and engaged. Certainly major rehab centers like Lakeshore Foundation is also a Paralympic training site and research center, so there’s ongoing program there. But then in my local community, we used to have wheelchair sports teams for track and field and basketball and tennis, and they kind of went away and now they’re starting to come back. It’s that wax and wane. And then when the Paralympics came under the US Olympic Paralympic, now it’s about elite sport and there’s all these feeder systems from Little League and local recreation and high school and colleges and professional races and things like that that are already in the mix for Olympians. And those individual sports like road racing, hand cycling, swimming, tennis are in that mix, but wheelchair basketball and softball and some of the team sports, sitting volleyball and that, those have to be unique leagues, right? Because those are only people with disability sports.
Sandy Hanebrink:
And so the USOC, Olympic Paralympic organization is about elite athleticism and they’re not… And they do the youth development just like they do for Olympics and that, but the people who compete in those development programs are already involved in recreational level and competitive club teams and things like that. And we just haven’t gotten there yet with Paralympics. A lot of focus was on our disabled veterans with the Paralympics because, let’s face it, we have young, strong, athletic people who thankfully were there for serving our country now with disabilities and were easy to integrate into programs. And I think the focus went there and the balance of continuing youth programming and adult community program kind of slacked off a little. Then there was a resurgence of trying to do programming and build Paralympic sports clubs, and I think some focus is there.
Sandy Hanebrink:
But really how I got involved was we said, “Hey, we don’t have this and we want to do this”. And we found, like in St. Louis, my uncle worked at Bishop DuBourg High School and they have a big parking lot. So I went to them and said, “Hey, can we paint a wheelchair softball field in your parking lot?” And that’s how we got a wheelchair softball team. In Mauldin here in South Carolina there was a Miracle League field and we got the city to make the outfield bigger so that it could accommodate wheelchair softball. And so now they just had a tournament last month that I attended to watch with teams from four different states. But the sustainability of trying to get more people into the program was what I was hearing from all of the teams, even the ones that came from rehab centers. And it’s like, “How do we get the younger people engaged?” And I think part of that’s going to have to start with it’s time for the high schools and junior high schools that have athletic teams to have them. It’s time for local rec centers to partner with the whole area in order to have the numbers they need for teams and to develop those feeder programs. And a lot of it still comes from people with disabilities just making that ask and forming the teams and keeping things going.
Stephanie Flynt McEben:
Thank you so, so much Sandy. I really appreciate. I know that we all really appreciate you discussing your lived experiences and participating in the Paralympics, and also talking about different ways that we can get today’s youth engaged in disabled sports. I know for me personally I did benefit from participating in disabled sports growing up. I was able to play soccer, I was able to participate on a swim team, and so participating in those things really does help in terms of helping with youth develop social skills and competency skills and leadership skills and various transferable skills and character development that can transfer into adulthood. And so I just wanted to know if you have any closing thoughts that you’d like to share with our listeners, any final thoughts that you have?
Sandy Hanebrink:
Yeah. I think for me I was an active athlete before I became disabled, and so being involved in disabled sports was all about what I can do, not what I can’t do. It was all about setting goals and pushing the limits and being a part of a team again. It was a way to achieve and to push things beyond what you thought you could ever do. I know like with the program we did in South Carolina, youth program… That was South Carolina and North Carolina we actually combined two states and we do some practices in South Carolina and some practices in North Carolina, and then we’d practice separately and that to make it happen. But it evolved into a Paralympic sports club. And the youth that started at four or five, six years old, some in their teens went on to college, they have families, they’re working. And when you compare it to statistically the same things that happen for youth who compete in non-disabled sports, the same benefits happen for youth in disabled sports. You develop those life skills and you’re successful and productive members of the community and you give back to the community.
Sandy Hanebrink:
And what I really love about the Paralympic movement is everybody kind of pays it forward. Like I’ve passed on my equipment to new athletes so that they could try things and get involved, other people have done that for me. People share their strategies. If my equipment broke, I’d actually had other athletes give me their equipment to use and I was competing against them. So it’s just a whole community dynamic, and to see from where we came in the ’80s where things were starting to boom with the evolution of sporting technologies, the changes in classification systems, the growth of Paralympic movement across the world to where it is today as considered equal athletes to our peer Olympians is quite amazing. The TV time, it’s part of everyday life of everyone, not just people with disabilities. Disabled athletes are recognized by the general public. It’s just the huge opportunities, and I just think it’s critical that youth sports and recreational sports for adults with disabilities be available so that we can continue to grow our teams for the Paralympics, but more importantly that we create those opportunities and those life skills for people with disabilities that should be available just like our non-disabled peers have.
Jack Rosen:
Well Sandy, thank you so much for taking the time to speak with us today. Where can the people find you? Do you have any social media or anything you’d like to promote?
Sandy Hanebrink:
Sure. Right now I’m actually part of the Caravan for Disability Freedom and Justice. So if you go to the Caravan for Disability Freedom and Justice 2024, we’re on Facebook, or The Disability Caravan. We’re traveling around the country celebrating people with disabilities, the history of people with disabilities, the resources and stuff today, and working towards the future. You can also get me at Touch the Future, we’re on Facebook. Or you can find me personally at Sandy Hanebrink on LinkedIn or Facebook tend to be the ones I’m on most. But I appreciate the opportunity and I’m just excited to be a part of it and really celebrate the growth of Disabled Sports and the Paralympic movement to where it is, this amazing competitive professional movement that it is today.
Jack Rosen:
And you can find those links in the show notes. Thank you so much for joining us today, Sandy.
Michelle Bishop:
Wow, y’all. Thanks so much to Sandy. It was really interesting hearing just how far things have come in terms of the Paralympics from where we started up through this year. And if you haven’t seen the little mascot for the Paralympics, it’s so cute. It’s that red hat that was the mascot for the Olympics, but he has a prosthetic leg. It’s super cute, you should check it out. Okay. Also, in honor of the Paralympics in Paris, Stephanie, I believe you have an on topic joke for us this month.
Stephanie Flynt McEben:
Of course I do, except it’s more of a question. And it’s something that I feel like people asked in 1982, but I wanted to know if anybody’s refrigerator is running? Get it? Because of the Olympics.
Michelle Bishop:
Oh, no.
Stephanie Flynt McEben:
Are there cricket noises that we can insert?
Michelle Bishop:
What worries me about that joke was not that I didn’t get where you were going, but that it’s an election year and I immediately took it as, “Is your refrigerator running for office?”
Stephanie Flynt McEben:
A frozen legislator? Oh, no.
Michelle Bishop:
It scares me when we’re too in sync, Stephanie, and it should scare everybody else.
Stephanie Flynt McEben:
Yeah, it’s fine. Well, hopefully you have been able to catch the end of this episode and my joke and all the things.
Michelle Bishop:
Jack, please tell the people where they can find us on social media and save us from this episode.
Jack Rosen:
As always, you can follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and Threads. And you can reach out to us at [email protected]. Untill next time folks –
Stephanie Flynt McEben:
What about TikTok?
Michelle Bishop:
She really snuck, “What about TikTok?” in there.
Jack Rosen:
Was that what you were yelling?
Stephanie Flynt McEben:
Yes.
Michelle Bishop:
Yeah.
