The project operates across north-west Italy, the area most of the association's athletes come from, with particular attention to the residential communities that permanently host people with disabilities.
Among the athletes who take part in the association's sports activities, several find traditional horseback riding, done in the saddle, very difficult or simply impossible. Being able to take part in the same setting, the riding arena, but from a carriage instead of a saddle, would let them enjoy that environment fully, something currently out of reach for them.
The project
The project introduces a technical solution, an adapted horse-drawn carriage, that lets athletes practise a form of equestrian activity safely, without needing to mount a horse. This is aimed in particular at athletes from the communities that already turn to the association every week for sport, many of whom have long felt excluded from horseback riding simply because of the physical difficulty of getting into the saddle.
Wheelchair users, in particular, can now take part directly, moving from their wheelchair onto the equipped carriage rather than being left out of the activity altogether. The aim throughout is to offer real, concrete additional sporting opportunities, giving every athlete, regardless of their disability, genuine access to the world of horseback riding.
Who the project is for
The project's beneficiaries include the 450 athletes who already take part in sport with Sportabili Alba today, among them wheelchair users who would never have imagined taking up horseback riding.
Alongside them, the project expects to reach 100 new users who currently do not take part in sport at all, due to fear, physical impossibility or the specific nature of their disability, and who will now have a genuine way in.
Project name: UNA CARROZZA PER UN SOGNO!
Proposing organisation: SPORTABILI ALBA APS ASD
Area of intervention: Inclusion & Social Development
Country: Italy