By Dr. Ian Brittain, Coventry University
As one of the outputs of the EventRights project focussed specifically on sports for disabled people, Coventry University TechnoCentre hosted the three-day Disability Sport: Promoting Human Rights, Diversity and Inclusion? Conference from 26th to 28th June 2024.
The 3-day event focused on promoting human rights, diversity and inclusion in disability sport, and was aimed at anyone interested in using sport as a tool for health, inclusion, peace or development for disabled people. Organised by Dr Ian Brittain, the conference attracted a total of forty-six people from eleven countries and four continents. The conference was focused around four key themes:
⚽ Disability sport, human rights, and social inclusion
🏏 Sport and health for disabled people
🏉 Paralympic and disability sport legacies
🎾 Disability sport for peace and development
There were a total of twenty presentations by participants and three keynote speakers. One day one Charmaine Hooper, CEO of World Ability sport, talked about the work they do around athletes with physical disabilities. On day two Vicky Hope-Walker, CEO of the National Paralympic Heritage Trust spoke about how the trust uses Paralympic heritage to change attitudes towards disability in the wider society and on day three Anna Scott-Marshall, Director of Communications and Social Impact for ParalympicsGB, talked about their role in using sport for social impact, particularly for the lives of disabled people.