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301 - Accessibility and Disparities in Wheelchair Fencing: A Study of 2023-24 United States National Competitions.

Thursday, February 27, 2025

5:00 PM - 6:30 PM MST

Presenting Author(s)

ES

Ellisha Shinchuk, n/a

Person of Interest
Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital
Newton, Massachusetts, United States

Co-Author(s)

DB

Daniel Barron, MD PhD

Physician
MassGeneralBrigham
Charlestown, Massachusetts, United States
CS

Chloe Slocum, MD, MPH

Associate Chair for Quality
Harvard Medical School Dept. of PM&R
Charlestown, Massachusetts, United States

Objectives: The objective of this study was to assess accessibility and disparities in wheelchair fencing through analysis of participation data in the U.S. national competitions and compare it to the participation rates in able-bodied fencing.

Design: We analyzed the event availability and attendance data across the 2023-24 fencing season U.S. national competitions. We compared participation overall and by discipline between wheelchair and able-bodied fencers and assessed the male-to-female participation ratio. We also ascertained the availability of wheelchair fencing programs by state.

Results: During the 2023-24 season, only 3 out of 9 national competitions included wheelchair fencing. The athlete-event participation for wheelchair and able-bodied fencers was 115 and 38,207, respectively, with wheelchair fencing accounting for 0.30% of the total number of athlete-events. There were no significant differences in the ratio of wheelchair to able-bodied fencers across three disciplines: 0.0031 for epee, 0.0029 for foil, and 0.0031 for saber (p-value = 0.94). There was a statistically significant difference in the male-to-female participation ratio in wheelchair fencing of 2.71:1 compared to the ratio in able-bodied fencing of 1.39:1 (p-value = 0.0013, 95% CI: 0.058-0.238). The analysis by state revealed that 26 states in the U.S. do not have a club that offers a wheelchair fencing program.

Conclusions: The analysis of the 2023-24 fencing season demonstrates low participation rate in wheelchair fencing with increased male-to-female ratio compared to able-bodied peers. Additionally, only a third of national competitions offered wheelchair fencing events and more than half of states in the U.S. did not have a club with a wheelchair fencing program. Strategic efforts on the part of all stakeholders to increase awareness, provide training and competition opportunities, erase gender inequalities, and remove barriers to participation will enable equitable access to the sport of fencing for people of all abilities.