How different wheelchair designs can help Paralympians excel
The Paralympics—so called for the Greek prefix para, meaning “alongside”—give elite disabled athletes the chance to compete at the highest level. Not all contenders in the games, which typically run after the Olympics, use wheelchairs, but those who do showcase some of the most technologically advanced assistive devices in the world. Each sport requires different tweaks to the standard chair; we break down a few of them here.Daily lifeOne example of a standard wheelchair, designed for this user's daily needs (Guilherme Henrique/)Every custom wheelchair has unique attributes tailored to the needs of the user, of which there are currently about 2.7 million in the US. This manual one weighs less than 20 pounds and has a foldable frame, so it’s easy to lift into a car’s trunk without injury. The handgrips collapse down so other people can’t push the chair without permission. A small detachable motor called a SmartDrive provides...