Wheelchair Tennis
Wheelchair tennis is a sport for people with physical disabilities that affect mobility at or below the waist. The only difference between wheelchair tennis and able-bodied tennis is that wheelchair tennis players get up to two bounces of the ball before hitting it back over the net, whereas able-bodied tennis players only get one. With this simple rule modification, wheelchair tennis is the most integrative adaptive sport for people with disabilities to play with people without disabilities. The wheelchair tennis pathway is parallel to the able-bodied side of tennis, with opportunities for junior, adult, collegiate, and professional players to compete at all levels of the sport.
JTCC is proud to have served more than 100 wheelchair tennis players in the DMV area since 2021. JTCC’s program in partnership with MedStar NRH is the most popular, having reached 45 players in the 2022-2023 program year. If you are interested in being on our contact list, please click the button in the bottom right hand corner of the page. Please contact Head of Wheelchair & Adaptive Tennis Gabby Hesse with any questions at ghesse@jtcc.org.
Free Weekly JTCC Wheelchair Tennis Clinics with MedStar NRH
JTCC partners with MedStar National Rehabilitation Hospital’s Adaptive Sports and Recreation program to provide seasonal free weekly wheelchair tennis clinics in the fall and spring at JTCC (5200 Campus Drive, College Park, MD 20740).
Outside of that timeframe, JTCC offers continuing opportunities for wheelchair tennis players to learn and play year-round.
Tennis wheelchairs are available upon request and are dependent on size and availability. Tennis wheelchairs are assigned first come, first served based on order of registration submission.
The Winter Session II is from November 6 – January 21 and clinics are held at JTCC (5200 Campus Drive, College Park, MD 20740). Class offerings are listed below.
Click Here to Register for Winter Session II
JTCC Integrated Junior & Adult Programs
Wheelchair tennis players, along with all adaptive players and veterans at JTCC, are eligible to receive financial aid to participate in junior and adult paid programming including clinics and special events. These classes mainly serve tennis players without disabilities, but due to the integrative design of tennis and JTCC’s entire staff trained in wheelchair and adaptive tennis, the classes are available to all players with and without disabilities.
Players who are eligible and have completed at least one session of adaptive tennis programming will receive an invitation to apply for financial aid at the end of their session.
Please contact ghesse@jtcc.org with any questions.
Baltimore Wheelchair Tennis Clinics
JTCC offers free seasonal wheelchair tennis clinics in the spring, summer, and fall in partnership with University of Maryland Medical and Baltimore City Parks & Rec. Clinics run in five week sessions and sports chairs are provided on a first come, first served basis.
All sessions for 2023 have been completed, please check back soon for more information on 2024 Baltimore clinics or contact Mike Henley at mhenley@umm.edu.
L4 JTCC Wheelchair Championships Tennis Tournament
JTCC hosts an annual sectional wheelchair tennis tournament in October. In 2021, the event attracted 17 players, in 2022 the tournament grew to 24 players, and 2023 the tournament hosted 32 players in all divisions. As the home tournament for players in JTCC and MedStar NRH’s wheelchair tennis clinics, the 2023 tournament attracted 16 of JTCC’s home players.
Save the date for the 2024 L4 JTCC Wheelchair Championships held October 18-20. You can check out last year’s tournament results and player list by viewing the link below.
Mid-Atlantic Wheelchair Team Tennis Series
The team-based format allows the otherwise individual sport of tennis to be modified into a collegiate-style of play with coaching and cheering allowed and players working on teams to win games. The team tennis concept exists on the able-bodied side of the sport at the junior and collegiate levels, and bringing it to wheelchair tennis attracts many of our multi-sport athletes who play team sports like wheelchair basketball and sled hockey. It also has served as an effective entry point into matchplay for intermediate players who have not competed in a sanctioned tennis tournament to develop confidence in their play with the added support from coaches. JTCC and Sportable Adaptive Sports and Recreation based in Richmond initiated the series in spring of 2022 to test out the format and provide players with a new way to engage with wheelchair tennis, hosting two team tennis competitions.
All-Comers Wheelchair Tennis Camp
JTCC is proud to host an annual USTA All Comers Wheelchair Tennis Camp every July. This unique camp brings in the best coaches from around the country and is open to wheelchair tennis players of all ages and ability levels. Please fill out the interest form in the bottom right corner of the page if you are interested in being notified when the next tennis camp is scheduled.
Coach Education
JTCC offers coach education opportunities annually for coaches, providers, recreation therapists, and other interested community members to learn more about coaching wheelchair tennis. The one-day training covers disability, chairs, and movement – the three significant areas that tennis coaches might not otherwise be familiar about before working with adaptive athletes. Please fill out the interest form in the bottom right corner of the page if you are interested in being notified when the next coach education clinic is scheduled.
Volunteer
Volunteering opportunities are available for clinics and special events in wheelchair tennis and other adaptive tennis programs at JTCC. To sign up for volunteering, create a POINT account and request to join the organization “JTCC”. All adult volunteers (18+) are required to complete USTA Safe Play certification before volunteering. Upon completion, volunteers can email ghesse@jtcc.org a screenshot of the completion.