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 50 players in the 2023-2024 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.
2024 JTCC Event Calendar
- Saturday, May 25 – Monday, May 27 (Memorial Day Weekend): Sectional Wheelchair Tennis Camp – JTCC is moving the annual July wheelchair tennis camp to Memorial Day weekend in May in order to provide a training opportunity for players before the start of the summer tournament season kicking off with the Richmond Sportable River City Slam! Visit the registration page for more information.
- Friday, July 5 – Sunday, July 7: National Juniors Wheelchair Tennis Camp – JTCC is adding a juniors-only 2.5 day USTA camp led by a Team USA national coach in July!
- Thursday, August 29 – Sunday, September 1 (Labor Day Weekend): USTA National Level 2/ITF Level 3 JTCC Wheelchair Tournament – we are thrilled to host a national/international tennis tournament on Labor Day weekend here in College Park!
Free Weekly JTCC Wheelchair Tennis Clinics with MedStar NRH
JTCC partners with MedStar National Rehabilitation Hospital’s Adaptive Sports and Recreation program to provide free weekly wheelchair tennis clinics year-round at JTCC (5200 Campus Drive, College Park, MD 20740).
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.
Classes are held year-round on Sunday afternoons at JTCC (5200 Campus Drive, College Park, MD 20740). Class offerings are listed below.
Click Here to Register for Wheelchair Tennis Classes
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.
Contact Mike Henley at mhenley@umm.edu for more information on registering for the program.
Coach Education
JTCC offers one-day wheelchair coach training classes once a year, typically in May or June. To learn more about wheelchair tennis coach education, please contact ghesse@jtcc.org.
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.