A PUSH to bring more wheelchair sports to the region has received a major boost thanks to the Tamworth Sportsdome and one passionate athlete.
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After years of work to help bring wheelchair sports to Tamworth, Solomon Noon's dream may soon become a reality as Tamworth prepares to host two wheelchair basketball events.
The first will be during the National Primary Games on July 20 and the second will be a come and try day hosted by the Sportsdome on August 6.
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Noon said he was pleased to see more opportunities being created for wheelchair sports in Tamworth.
"It's a lot of fun to play and it's great to see it happening," Noon said.
"I can't wait."
Northern Inland Acadamey of Sport (NIAS) programs and events manager Brent Hartley said the organisation was thrilled to be offering wheelchair basketball at this year's games.
"This will be the first year that wheelchair basketball will be part of the games," Hartley said.
"Basketball NSW have also come onboard to help promote the come and try day during this year's games, which is great as well.
"The inclusion this year comes off the back of Wheelchair Sports NSW having a component of sports at the Academy Games back in April.
"From that point of view, it is very exciting to see these sports gaining traction here in Tamworth."
Sportsdome supervising manager Sally Hemmings said she was hopeful the upcoming events would be "a launch pad" for regular wheelchair sports to be played in Tamworth.
"Here at the Sportsdome we are committed to helping people get involved in sport and leading a healthy lifestyle," Hemmings said.
"For us it would be fantastic to be able to host regular wheelchair sports competitions and leagues in the future."
Hemmings said she was "excited to see how the come and try day goes".
"Thanks to the work of people like Solomon, we are now in a position to try and host these kinds of sports," she said.
"Hopefully, with more interest from the community and some more hard work we will be able to proudly offer wheelchair sports to our community on a regular basis."
