Fives for People with Parkinson's
Natalie Lilienthal reports:
16/07/26: This week the Westway Club arranged and hosted a Fives taster event for a group of local adults living with Parkinson's disease.
As is so often the case with adult starters in Fives, they had never previously seen the sport except for a quick flavour on YouTube before arriving. So although they were keen to try they weren't sure how suitable it would be for them.
With varying mobility issues among the group this session was a learning experience for everyone, coaches included!, as we made various adaptations to suit the specific needs of each person. This enabled easier access to the game from getting on the court in the first place, to trying out hitting a ball with their hands, before we looked at cooperative and competitive game varieties and ensured everyone was able to go at their own pace.
The session focused on the basic skills of ball striking with both hands using 'beginner' balls, both the foam practice balls and working up to low-bounce tennis balls. With various warm up exercises to enable the group to build confidence in their movement on the court and become acquainted with the potential 'hazards' of our unique court design.
They all progressed to playing Top Step games in pairs - the step itself being a worry for most initially but one they all got to grips with after some time on the courts. The whole group got really stuck in to developing their hand-eye skills and reaction times.
The highlight of the session was a rotational game of King of the Court which was full of competitive spirit, plenty of volleys and a lot of laughter; their commitment to keeping the ball in play rather outlasted the stamina of their coach on a hot July day!
Their feedback about Fives: 'it's exhilarating', 'the perfect sport for us', 'really accessible', 'equal parts fun and frustration'.
It was an absolute delight to host them and introduce them to the best elements of Fives and we hope to see them back again.
Click on the link for more information about 'Power Up Parkies'.
If you'd like to support the provision of future Fives for this group please get in touch.
With my thanks to Freddie Rowe and The Westway Club for hosting this unique session.