Basketball and Netball
Basketball and netball are inclusive, team-based sports that play an important role in promoting physical activity, social participation, and personal development for persons with intellectual impairments. These sports emphasise structure, routine, repetition, and teamwork, which support learning, confidence-building, and meaningful engagement.
Programmes are adapted to accommodate different ability levels, ensuring participation is based on individual capacity and support needs rather than competitive performance alone.
Both sports can be adapted to accommodate a wide range of ability levels, allowing participants to develop skills at their own pace while enjoying the structure, routine, and social interaction that team sports provide.
What Assistance are you Looking for?
A. Basketball
i. About Adaptive Basketball
ii. Paralympic Pathways
iii. Benefits of Basketball
iv. Competition categories
iv. Rules
B. Netball
i. About Netball
ii. Paralympic Pathways
ii. Adaptive Netball
Basketball
Basketball is a dynamic, team-based sport that promotes fitness, coordination, teamwork, and social inclusion.
In South Africa, basketball is accessible to individuals with neurological impairments through both adaptive and inclusive formats, depending on the nature and functional impact of the impairment. Neurological impairments may affect coordination, balance, reaction time, muscle control, or movement planning, and basketball programmes are adapted accordingly to ensure safe and meaningful participation.
Participation is based on functional ability, not diagnosis alone.
Individuals with neurological impairments such as autism spectrum disorder without intellectual impairment, epilepsy (where seizures are well controlled), multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, acquired brain injury, stroke, or other neurological conditions may participate in basketball.
Eligibility is determined primarily by functional ability rather than medical diagnosis, and participation may take place in mainstream teams with reasonable accommodation, in modified community programmes, or in wheelchair basketball where mobility limitations are significant.
Paralympic pathways
Basketball participation is available at recreational and community levels through schools, clubs, and local organisations, and can progress to structured club and provincial competition. For athletes with qualifying impairments, national and international competition is possible through recognised para-sport pathways.
Basketball under the Special Olympics framework is not available to persons with neurological impairments – unless an intellectual impairment is also present.
Paralympic Basketball
From a high-performance perspective, the primary Paralympic pathway for persons with neurological impairments is wheelchair basketball which is open to athletes with physical or neurological impairments that affect lower-limb function
Wheelchair basketball is an official Paralympic sport and is governed internationally under rules aligned with the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), with sport-specific adaptations.
Athletes are classified using a functional classification system that ranges from 1.0 to 4.5 points, based on trunk stability, balance, and limb function. This classification system ensures fair competition by balancing functional ability across teams rather than categorising athletes solely by diagnosis.
Benefits of basketball
The benefits of basketball for persons with neurological impairments are substantial and include:
cardiovascular fitness, muscle strength, coordination, and balance, while also enhancing cognitive skills such as decision-making, spatial awareness, and reaction time. As a team sport, basketball also promotes communication, cooperation, confidence, and social inclusion, contributing positively to both physical and psychosocial wellbeing.
Competition Categories
Competition categories for basketball participation by persons with neurological impairments include wheelchair basketball, which is the most common and established competitive pathway and forms part of the Paralympic sport system. Inclusive or unified basketball formats are also available, where teams are made up of players with and without disabilities and participation is based on ability with reasonable accommodation.
Recreational adaptive basketball also provides non-classified, skill-based participation opportunities focused on enjoyment, physical activity, and inclusion rather than formal competition.
Rules
Basketball for persons with neurological impairments is generally played under standard FIBA rules, with appropriate adaptations made for wheelchair or inclusive formats to ensure accessibility and fairness.
Each team consists of five players on the court at any given time, and the game structure remains largely consistent with mainstream basketball.
A strong emphasis is placed on safety, fair play, and the use of functional classification systems where applicable, particularly in competitive wheelchair basketball, to ensure balanced competition and equitable participation.
For Traditional Basketball Rules
The International Basketball Federation (FIBA) publishes the official global rules for basketball, which are adapted as the foundation for all formats of the sport: Official Basketball Rules (FIBA): https://about.fiba.basketball/en/our-sport/official-basketball-rules
The International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF) is the official governing body for wheelchair basketball and publishes adapted rules that align with FIBA while addressing wheelchair-specific play > Official Wheelchair Basketball Rules (IWBF) downloads page: https://www.iwbf.org/downloads
Netball is a widely played sport in South Africa and is well known for its emphasis on agility, coordination, teamwork, and positional play. Although netball is not currently included as a Paralympic sport, it is increasingly offered in inclusive and adaptive formats for persons with neurological impairments, particularly at community and developmental levels.
Persons with neurological impairments that affect balance, coordination, motor planning, reaction time, or endurance may participate in adaptive netball programmes. This includes individuals with conditions such as autism spectrum disorder – without intellectual impairment, epilepsy with appropriate medical clearance, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, and mild to moderate acquired neurological conditions. Participation is generally non-classified, meaning that involvement is based on individual ability and support needs rather than formal medical or functional classification.
Adaptive netball can accommodate individuals with neurological impairments that affect: Balance and coordination, Reaction time and motor planning,
Endurance and/or muscle control. Participation is typically non-classified within the Mild to moderate acquired neurological impairment spectrum, focusing on inclusion and functional ability.
Paralympic Pathways
Netball is not a Paralympic sport.
Participation remains developmental and recreational. Participation centres around schools, NGOs, and community clubs on a recreational level. Club and Developmental Leagues are growing, with a focus on adapted rules and inclusive formats. Provincial Inclusion Programmes. are limited but growing.
Special Olympics Netball is only available to athletes with intellectual impairments.
Not open to persons with neurological impairments unless an intellectual impairment is also present.
Adaptive Netball
Rules for adaptive netball are generally based on standard netball regulations, with modifications made to support inclusion and safety. These adaptations may include reduced court size, flexible movement restrictions, adjusted match duration, and modified substitution rules. The focus is on skill development, participation, and enjoyment rather than competitive performance.
Games are played on a rectangular court with raised goal rings at each end. Each team attempts to score goals by passing a ball down the court and shooting it through its goal ring. Players are assigned specific positions, which define their roles within the team and restrict their movement to certain areas of the court. During general play, a player with the ball can hold onto it for only three seconds before shooting for a goal or passing to another player. The winning team is the one that scores the most goals. Netball games are 60 minutes long.