Wheelchair football teams come to Chicago area to compete in tournament
ROSEMONT, Ill. (CBS) – The athletes who play wheelchair football wear helmets, but no shoulder pads, because they hit with their wheelchairs.
Some of the best wheelchair athletes around are playing in Rosemont all weekend long at a big tournament at the Wintrust Financial Campus.
"You're going to see a lot of quick movements, a lot of hits, a lot of falls, but really, a lot of heart and a lot of great plays," said. "It's a lot of mayhem, but it's amazing."
The game of metal and muscle is not for the faint of heart, but it's perfect for Mak Nong and Luke Fanella. Nong is the captain of the GLASA Chicago Bears Wheelchair Football Team and has been playing wheelchair football since its competitive inception.
"There's a lot of people with less limbs, but there's more heart," he said.
This weekend, the USA Wheelchair Football League will roll into Rosemont. The Great Lakes Adaptive Sports Association will play host to a tournament.
"It's going to be a great weekend of speed, power," said Nong. "It's going to be a lot of great football."
Football fans wondering how the sports works will easily catch on. Tom McCabe, who officiates games all over the country, said it's seven-on-seven. Everybody on offense is an eligible receiver. On a 60-yard field, teams pick up first downs at the 15, 30, and 15 yard lines.
"Some of these guys, they make spectacular catches, spectacular plays," McCabe said.
In wheelchair football the equivalent of a lush grass field is a pristine parking lot. Players say it's "a whole new experience falling on it."
"If you fall down, it's going to hurt a lot more," said Nong.
Still, the athletes make anything look easy.
"I was born with one leg," Nong said. "I always tell people I was born lucky, right? So I grew up kind of just being introduced to adaptive sports, and then as I got older, I got really good at wheelchair sports."
The players said they love the sport because it allows them to play while also connecting with other people who share similar challenges.
"Regardless of whatever our ability is, we love this game and we're here to play it," said Nong.
The Bears Wheelchair Football Team has three games on Saturday and hopes to compete for the championship on Sunday. Games start at 8 a.m. and go until 7 p.m. at the Wintrust Financial Campus on West Higgins Road.
There will also be a clinic for those who want to learn more about the sport.