Ice Sledge Racing
Ice sledge racing a winter sport in which contestants use a lightweight sledge with skating blades underneath and propel themselves using two poles held in the hands. There are races for men and women over 100m, 500m, 700m1000m and 1500m. It is contested on a 400m (1,300 ft) circumference speed skating rink.
The sport is primarily for athletes with physical disabilities to the legs, though in the Netherlands the sport is still actively practised by athletes with and without disabilities.
The original sleds used for racing were made of wood. Nowadays, they are often made of aluminum or iron. Sleds used for racing are of a different design to those for ice sled hockey.
Ice sledge racing was a Paralympic sport between 1980-1988 and 1994-1998.
Similar Sports
- Long Track Speed Skating - ice skaters race head to head on a 400m oval track for a set distance, between 500 and 10,000 m.
- Short Track Speed Skating — 4 to 8 skaters racing around an oval ice track towards the finish line.
- Ice Sledge Hockey — ice hockey on double-blade sledges for people with physical disabilities on the lower body.
Related Pages
- Ice sledge racing at the Paralympics
- List of Sports at the Paralympic Games
- Sports for the Disabled
- Complete list of sports
- The Encyclopedia of Sports
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