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| Sport by, for and with people with disabilities has gained considerable importance in recent years in Europe. There has been an evolution in the kind of sports activities available and nowadays many sports are accessible for both physically and mentally disabled people. Everybody, whether disabled or non-disabled, young or old, boys or girls, can appreciate and benefit from sport activities. 1.1 Empowerment Sport and games give the opportunity and the necessary space to children with disabilities to find new ways of dealing with the challenges of daily life. In safe surroundings, mistakes usually do not carry any serious consequences. All innovative initiatives are appreciated and nobody needs to be afraid of sanctions. Trainers should encourage learning from all experiences, the good ones as well as the bad ones. Children's selfesteem increases and they get more and more self-confident as they learn how to prepare a game, to adapt the rules to specific needs if necessary, to organise the team and to take over an individual role. During the game they concentrate on a specific goal, sense the team spirit and experience competition as a challenge and not as a threat. With growing self-esteem and self-confidence children with disabilities may feel encouraged to try and find an active place in society. | |
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