A "different kind of accomplishment" is what Paralympian Adam Lancia calls playing at home in front of family and friends.
That accomplishment is sought after by 21 of Canada’s top male wheelchair basketball players, including Scarborough’s Lancia, 34. and Abdi Dini, 33, who hope to be selected for the 2015 Canadian Senior Men’s National Wheelchair Basketball team that will play in the Toronto 2015 Parapan Am Games.
Wheelchair Basketball Canada, the national sports governing body, is holding its selection camp for the 21 athletes from Dec. 14 to 19 at the Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre in Scarborough.
On Dec. 16, The Scarborough Mirror checked in with Lancia and Dini as they took part in a series of drills and scrimmages. Both Lancia and Dini won gold medals at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London, England.
"Winning anything is phenomenal," Lancia said. "But winning in front of your family and friends and being able to go hug your grandparents after, it’s great."
The athletes aim to perform to the best of their abilities in the Toronto 2015 Parapan Am Games, hoping to pave the way to the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
"It’s special," Dini said about winning gold. "But I’m still trying to get better, the team is still trying to get better. Our goal right now is to go to the Parapan Am Games and qualify for Rio 2016."
Dini has lived in Scarborough since 2001 when he moved from Waterloo, ON after graduating from high school to attend Centennial College. He started playing wheelchair basketball in 1996 and went on to play for the Variety Village Wheelchair Basketball team before moving up to the national team.
Dini’s first Paralympics was at Beijing 2008, where he joined the team as a rookie and won a silver medal with teammate Lancia. At London 2012, Lancia, Dini and the rest of the team went on to win gold.
Lancia, who’s carries 13 years of experience playing on the national team, said he likes to helps out younger players, remembering a time when he was a rookie.
"It’s all fairly familiar to me," he said. "It gives me a chance to teach the young guys starting out, I put myself in their shoes and help them out."
Lancia was born and raised in Scarborough, growing up around Markham and Lawrence. He graduated from Birchmount Park Collegiate Institute and the University of Illinois before joining the junior men’s team in 1997. Since 2001, Lancia’s been a member of the national team, playing in the Paralympics in Athens, Beijing and London.
The Toronto 2015 Parapan Am Games offer Lancia and Dini a chance to perform at home in front of their family, friends and even old classmates.
"There’s definitely an advantage on home ground," Dini said. "But we still have to compete hard. We have to do our part and our family and friends will do their part by cheering for us."
Dini added that the Parapan Am Games will bring a lot of diversity to the city. Toronto residents will get to see approximately 1,560 athletes from several different countries perform in 15 different sports.
"I’m happy for the City of Toronto," he said.
The Toronto 2015 Parapan Am Games run Aug. 7-14, just 12 days after the Pan Am Games end.
For more information on the Toronto 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games, visit www.toronto2015.org. For more information on Wheelchair Basketball Canada, visit www.wheelchairbasketball.ca
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