Gdansk : During halftime of Germany´s wheelchair rugby game against Canada at the Paris Paralympics, Jens Sauerbier was missing a crucial part of his wheelchair and needed a repair to continue playing.“The metal cage at the front of my chair broke.
They welded it for me during halftime, then I was ready to go again.”It took 10 minutes for technicians to weld the chair back together.
Otherwise, Sauerbier says, the game would have been over for him. Mid-game and pre-competition repairs are not unusual for para-athletes.
Wheelchairs, prosthetic limbs and crucial equipment can and do break, even at the highest level of competition.This is especially true in a high-contact sport such as wheelchair rugby. “If you're driving against other people at 15/20 km/h, some things might break,” Sauerbier said.“These are athletes that are competing at their absolute highest.