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Wheelchair rugby is a full-contact team sport conducted for players with disabilities. The sport was originally called "Murderball" due to the aggressive nature of the game. Athletes use specially designed wheelchairs to play the sport. The sport has rules derived from other sports like, wheelchair basketball, handball, and rugby union. Wheelchair rugby is a mixed-gender sport where teams can have men and women play together. It is currently played in over 25 countries around the world, and is part of the Paralympic Games.

The sport is played indoors, on hardwood surfaces, between two teams with up to six players on each team. There can only be four active players on the field per team. The playing area is rectangular in shape, with designated goal lines on the two shorter ends. There is also a small, marked rectangular area right in front of the goal line called key.

During each possession, one team tries to score, as the other team defends. Players can carry the ball on their wheelchairs, but the ball has to be passed to others within 10 seconds. To score a goal, a player should have possession of the ball, and both wheels has to cross the goal line through the key area. The key area cannot be defended by more than three opponents at any time.

A match is played in four, eight-minute quarters. The team that scores the most goals wins the match. If a match is tied at the end, overtime periods of three minutes each, are played to decide the winner.

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Similar Sports

• Wheelchair Rugby League — a version of rugby league football played using a wheelchair
• Wheelchair Basketball — basically regular basketball played on a wheelchair.
• AFL Wheelchair — a wheelchair version of the football code from Australia, played between two teams of five players.
• Walking Rugby — a variation of rugby in which players can only walk, developed for older people to keep active.

Related Pages

• Wheelchair Rugby at the Paralympic Games
• About the Paralympic Games
• Sports for the Disabled
• Complete list of sports
• The Encyclopedia of Sports