Player's Guide to Basketball Australia Wheelchair Basketball Open Age 2024

No. The IWBF says class reflects functional capacity to perform pushing, pivoting, shooting, rebounding, dribbling, passing and catching, and it does not measure skill level.

Trunk movement and stability during these actions are the basis for class assignment. Classes are defined by "volume of action", meaning how far a player can lean without holding the wheelchair before losing balance. Classes 1 to 4 are recognised, with 0.5 values for borderline cases and 4.5 for the player with the least disability.

Source: iwbf.org/the-game/classification/.

Basketball Australia runs classification as a pathway with three levels, and the level you need depends on where you are on the Wheelchair Basketball Pathway. To start, complete the "Request for Classification" form linked on australia.basketball/wheelchair-basketball/classification/players.

• Provisional Classification: a paperwork process run by trained classifiers. It suits athletes just starting out or without access to a face-to-face panel.
• National Classification: a face-to-face evaluation by trained classifiers, managed by Basketball Australia and usually held at National Wheelchair Basketball events. National outcomes supersede Provisional outcomes.
• International Classification: managed by the Basketball Australia High Performance program. You must be in a Basketball Australia National Squad and nominated by Basketball Australia. International outcomes supersede National and Provisional outcomes.

For general enquiries Basketball Australia points to its Contact Us page (australia.basketball/about/who-we-are/contact-us) and its State and Territory Members page.

Source: Basketball Australia classification pages.

After an evaluation, Basketball Australia's classification page says a player gets a sport class and a class status:

• Review (R): the panel believes more evaluation sessions are needed, for example because of a fluctuating or progressive impairment, a permanent but unstable impairment, or incomplete physical maturity.
• Review with a Fixed Review Date (FRD): more evaluation is needed, but not before a set date. You must attend at the first opportunity from 1 January of the review year, unless a panel grants an earlier evaluation (for example through a Classification Protest or Medical Review request).
• Confirmed: the panel is satisfied that your impairment and ability to perform wheelchair basketball tasks are stable, so no further evaluation is normally required. Exceptions include future rule changes, a granted Medical Review, or progression from National to International level.

Source: australia.basketball/wheelchair-basketball/classification/players.

The five players on court for a team may total at most 14.0 classification points at any time. Under the IWBF rules, if a team exceeds the 14-point limit during a game, a technical foul is charged to the coach and the line-up must be corrected at the same time.

The IWBF rules apply the 14-point limit to IWBF's main official competitions (such as the World Championships and Paralympic Tournaments) and note that variations in the points total may apply in other competitions. Basketball Australia's classification page states the 14-point combined limit for the five players on court.

Sources: IWBF Official Wheelchair Basketball Rules 2024, Art. 51; Basketball Australia classification evaluation process page.

Wheelchair basketball has a "three pushes" travelling rule. While holding the ball you may move in any direction, but:

• The number of pushes while holding the ball must not exceed 2.
• Pivot movements count as part of the dribble and are limited to 2 consecutive pushes without dribbling the ball.
• Braking a wheel without backward or forward movement of the hand(s) is not a push.

Breaking the rule is a violation.

A dribble starts when you push on your large wheels and dribble the ball at the same time, or take one or two pushes with the ball resting on your lap (not between your knees) or held in your hand, and then dribble. You may repeat that sequence as often as you wish.

Source: IWBF Official Wheelchair Basketball Rules 2024, Art. 24 and 25.

Lifting is not allowed. Lifting means raising your buttocks so both cheeks are no longer in contact with the seating platform (or the cushion, if one is used) to gain an unfair advantage. You must not lift to shoot, rebound or pass, to block a shot or pass, to secure a pass, or when contesting the tap-off at the start of the first quarter. A technical foul is charged against the offender, with a free throw awarded to the opponents.

If lifting happens while trying to block a shot, a technical foul is charged and the shooter gets free throws: if the shot from the goal area was successful the goal counts plus 1 free throw; if an unsuccessful 2-point shot, 2 free throws; if an unsuccessful 3-point shot, 3 free throws.

Jumping: you must not cause all parts of your wheelchair to come off the floor while both hands are off the rear wheels.

Retrieving the ball: a violation is charged if you lean forward to retrieve a ball from the floor and raise your buttocks off the seat.

Tilting is legal. Tilting is when, with one or two hands off the wheels, you lift one rear wheel with one front castor off the floor while shooting, defending, receiving or intercepting a pass, rebounding or taking part in the tap-off.

Source: IWBF Official Wheelchair Basketball Rules 2024, Art. 31.

Yes. The IWBF rules say the wheelchair is considered part of the player, and a personal foul is illegal contact with an opponent, which includes their wheelchair.

• Cylinder: each player has the right to the space occupied by their wheelchair and their torso in the upright seated position, including the air space above. It is measured from the palms of the hands and footrest or front bar at the front, to the back outside edge of the large wheels at the rear, and the outside edge of the large wheels at the sides.
• If a player leaves their cylinder and contact occurs with an opponent who had already established theirs, the player who left is responsible for the contact.
• A defender must not be penalised for having hands and arms extended above them within their own cylinder.
• An attacker must not cause contact with a defender in a legal guarding position by using their arms to create extra space (clear-out), or by spreading their legs or arms to cause contact during or immediately after a shot.
• A player must not hold, block, push, charge, trip or impede an opponent with a hand, arm, elbow or shoulder, or by bending into an abnormal position outside their cylinder, or play roughly or violently.

Source: IWBF Official Wheelchair Basketball Rules 2024, Art. 32 to 34.

The IWBF rules treat the wheelchair as part of the player, and a wheelchair that breaches the equipment rules is banned from the game. Key points in Art. 3.1:

• A protective horizontal bar at the front or side must be 11 cm from the floor at its most forward point and throughout its whole length.
• Where there is no protective bar, the footrest must be 11 cm from the floor at its most forward point and throughout its whole length. Where there is a bar, the footrest behind it can be any height as long as it does not touch the floor.
• The underside of the footrests must be designed to prevent damage to the playing surface. A roller bar under the wheel rests for floor protection is permitted.
• One or two anti-tip devices using no more than 2 small castors in total can be added at the rear, even if they frequently or continuously touch the floor. The width between castors must be no more than the distance between the inside of the two big wheels.

Source: IWBF Official Wheelchair Basketball Rules 2024, Art. 3.1.