To us, this is a no brainer. If an athlete is member of a team, trains with team, competes for the team, and then WINS for the team... of COURSE they should earn points, whether they are in a wheelchair or not. There are those, however, that feel it's not "fair" to allow an adaptive athlete to score because not all schools have an adaptive athlete, and this would give a competitive advantage to those that do. Our proposal to the MHSAA takes this into account.
1.We want kids to be recruited onto their school teams! This is a new category, and if a coach knows there's a kid out there that can earn the team points, they will seek those kids out. This is a win-win for everyone.
2. The amount of points an adaptive athlete earns for their school team varies based on the number of adaptive athletes participating. The more adaptive athletes competing in a meet, the more points are on the table to earn.
3. Points are not automatic - they still need to be earned, even if there is only one athlete competing. A lone athlete competes against the clock to beat a standard time set by US Adaptive Track and Field. If there is more than one athlete, then they compete against each other.
This scoring system ensures fairness to all participants and teams, while encouraging recruitment of adaptive athletes, and including them as valued (and valuable) team members. It is simple, equitable, and beneficial to everyone.