Wheelchair rugby smashes stereotypes at the Paralympics

By STEPHEN WADE
AP Sports Writer

TOKYO (AP) — The United States will face Britain in the gold-medal final of wheelchair rugby at the Tokyo Paralympic Games. The United States defeated Australia 49-42 to reach the final. Britain defeated Japan 55-49 in the other semifinal. Anyone who has seen the famous 2005 documentary film “Murderball” knows about the sport. Wheelchair rugby features constant mayhem that distracts from the fact that these athletes have spinal cord injuries, they’re missing arms and legs, and they’re strapped into wheelchairs that resemble battered bumper cars. The smash into each other much like bumper cars at the local amusement park.