The Piedmont Area Tennis association hosts its second annual Wheelchair Tennis Camp

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (WVIR) - The Piedmont Area Tennis Association is serving up lessons all weekend with the help of a Paralympic gold medalist.

Athletes from all over the country are attending the second annual Wheelchair Tennis Camp at Boar’s Head Sports Club.

Leading the camp is three-time Paralympic gold medalist David Wagner.

“We’ve got about thirty kids and adults here at the the camp, and we’re just kind of running through the motions of wheelchair tennis, from beginner level all the way up to advanced level,” Wagner said.

Wagner says he loves tennis because it is a sport that almost anybody can play together.

“The beauty of our sport is it is a sport that is very integrable with the able-bodied game, so we can play alongside our able-bodied teammates and players,” Wagner said.

Wagner’s work inspires many young people with disabilities to engage with the things they enjoy.

“It’s good to have a role model. Especially a role model who’s also in the chair,” Mason McGrady said.

McGrady has attended the camp since it was first introduced last year.

“Wheelchair tennis is like, you kind of have to look at it through a scope of not being necessarily a sport and more like us. A social community for us,” McGrady said. “It’s a way for people with physical disabilities to actually congregate and not just play tennis, but also enjoy each other’s company.”

The camp runs until Sunday, August 13.

The Piedmont Area Tennis Association will be back later this year for its December open.

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