Children in Motion: Together is Better

Sasha, from the class 9Z, happily clutches a certificate for 3rd place in the city athletics festival. She participates in her school's aerobics team, though just a few years ago she did not believe she would ever be successful. Sasha has an intellectual and developmental disability.  In performances, she used to be in the second line-up in the back row. Sasha had problems with coordination and memory, and she could not remember the order of the different parts in shows. “Sasha developed a little slower than her peers, she didn't start walking or talking until later. She used to be hyperactive and couldn't sit still,” remembers Sasha's aunt Yulia.

Everything changed after the school began hosting inclusive sports events by the Regional Society of Disabled People Perspektiva such as parasport festivals, boccia curling, workshops on para-powerlifting and sitting volleyball. Sasha met athletes with disabilities and started to believe in her own abilities. She realized that she could also work towards her goals and have something to be proud of.

“That's when I saw what motivation is to a child. Every day at school Sasha would ask me, ‘Olga Nikolaevna, are we going to dance today’? Sasha never complained about being tired after rehearsals. She would always say: ‘I danced all night in my dreams, let’s go practices,’” commented Olga Nikolaevna, Sasha’s gym teacher.

Gradually, Sasha moved from the back rows back row to the first row and started winning first place at dance competitions at different schools and city-wide competitions. Sasha's family is convinced that it was her gym classes that gave her the motivation and confidence she needed to start developing.  After dance, she started playing volleyball and joined the school team.  She became more sociable and less shy. “I like playing volleyball. I made friends with other kids on the team, and we hang out after school,” says Sasha.

Sasha became more independent, and this year for the first time her aunt let her go with her school's hiking club to the Krasnodar region and Karelia. Finally, as one of the most athletic and diligent students, Sasha is getting ready for the Abilympics championship in the Adaptive Physical Education category. Good luck to Sasha, may she take home the victory!