Local Veteran Competes in National Veterans Wheelchair Games

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       Anchorage, Alaska. -- July 5,2006 -- Matthew Powell, a disabled Army veteran from Charleston, Ark., is competing in the 26th National Veterans Wheelchair Games, being held through July 8 in Anchorage, Alaska. With more than 550 athletes from 46 states, Puerto Rico and Great Britain, this is the largest annual wheelchair sports event in the world. All athletes are military veterans who use wheelchairs due to spinal cord injuries, certain neurological conditions, orthopedic amputations or other disabilities. Powell, 39, has neurological damage. He is currently receiving care at the VA medical facility in Muskogee, Okla.

       Powell is competing in the following events:

bowling (manual)
field - discus
field - javelin
table tennis
air guns (para)

       "When we compete in the National Veterans Wheelchair Games, all of the athletes have common threads," said Powell. "We all served our country and now we all use a wheelchair. We compete to represent our state and our towns; however, we come back with friends, memories and a feeling of being needed."

       Athletes in the Games compete within three divisions -- Masters (over age 40), Novice (first-time competitors in the Games), and Open (all others, or those who chose to compete in this category). They also compete within classes according to the level of their physical ability, with three quadriplegic-level classes (IA, IB, and IC), and four paraplegic-level or amputee classes (II, III, IV, and V). Powell competes as a Class IC in the Open division.

       The Games are presented by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA), and are hosted this year by the Alaska VA Healthcare System and Regional Office and the Paralyzed Veterans of America Northwest Chapter. Funded with help from a host of corporations and service organizations, the National Veterans Wheelchair Games are a showcase for the benefit of sports rehabilitative programs, and the remarkable athletic abilities and personal achievements of our nation's disabled veterans.

Note to Editor:
If you would like to interview Powell, contact Kim Byers, National Veterans Wheelchair Games Public Affairs Coordinator, at (734) 761-7824 after July 10. (Above information regarding military service and disability provided by veteran.)