What is Wheelchair Handball?
An adaptive format of European Handball, this mixed-gender, all-abilities, inclusive sport played in Wheelchairs.
About Wheelchair Handball
Wheelchair handball takes the speed and physicality of Olympic handball and puts it on wheels. Two teams, four players each (including at least one woman on court at all times), race up and down the court, passing, dodging and shooting to put the ball in the goal.
It's fast, tactical, and unapologetically physical — a genuine full-contact adaptive sport built for elite athleticism, and one where mixed-gender, mixed-ability inclusion is written into the rules of the game itself.
The Rules
How the game works
01
Team Size
02
Equipment & Court
4-a-side, mixed-gender format — every team must have at least one female player on court at all times
Played on a standard handball-sized court, in manual sports wheelchairs
03
Scoring
04
Positions
Goals are scored by throwing the ball past the goalkeeper into the net for 1 point. A 360 degree spin for shooting earns 2 points.
Fast transitions between attack and defence — matches move at a relentless pace and all four playes can go anywher on the court.
Australia Competes on the World Stage
Wheelchair handball has been building momentum internationally for years, and 2026 marks a landmark moment: the first IHF Wheelchair Handball World Championship to include nations from all six inhabited continents. Twelve nations will compete in Granollers, Spain from 16–20 September 2026 — including three debutants: Libya, Lithuania, and Australia.
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