Wheelchair tennis tournament comes to Hanover Park

HANOVER PARK, Ill. (WLS) -- One week ago, we watched as thousands of Chicago Marathon participants raced through Chicago - both runners and wheelchair athletes.

Of course, that's by far not the only sport that includes wheelchair athletes.

A group of outstanding athletes has been competing and showing off their amazing skills on the tennis court this weekend. But these players have an extra challenge, and some might say "extra abilities" - they are playing tennis in wheelchairs.

Paul Moran was injured while he was in college, but take a look at his moves on the court. This grueling sport is wheelchair tennis.

The only difference in the game is that players in chairs are allowed hit the ball after it takes an extra bounce. And that makes for a lot of spinning.

"You keep the chair moving a lot so you might see a wheelchair tennis player turn their back to the court to recover or they may spin around, where you wouldn't really be spinning so much on the tennis court if you were on your feet," Moran said. "I have to tell my little kid that I teach not to spin sometimes. It takes them for a little pirouette. It's fun. It keeps it exciting."

Exciting and very physically demanding, with the wheels really taking the place of hips for pivoting.

Elisha Hougland teaches the sport.

"A lot of upper body movement also where you're moving the wheelchair," Hougland said. "You've got a racquet in your hands. It's very hard to move the wheelchair while there's a racquet in your hands."

"I've actually gotten in a wheelchair myself and tried it out and it's very difficult," she said.

Melissa Kress was so impressed that for ten years, she tried to get a tournament started. Last year it finally happened.

And the second annual tourney is actually taking place this weekend at Centre Court Athletic Club in Hanover Park. Kress calls it a great spectator sport.

"The thing with wheelchairs is that once you start watching it, you forget that you're watching people in wheelchairs. It's a fluid sport," Kress, manager of Centre Court Athletic Club, said. "The people who are coming to the tournament, these are professional athletes. They train, they coach and about all they are athletes. So when you watch you eventually forget about anybody being in a wheelchair and just enjoy the sport."

And you might just find yourself inspired.

"Whether you've got legs or you've got legs that work or how many you have, wheelchair tennis and all the wheelchair sports are a great opportunity to stay active," Moran said. "You don't have to sit on the couch, you know. Especially if you have a disability. There are lots of things out there to do."

It's not too late to watch these athletes in action. The semi-finals and finals of the tournament are taking place Sunday at the Centre Court Athletic Club.

For more information or to find out how you can get involved in this sport, visit www.hpparks.org.