The G-Spot of Flanders

I started this blog in 2021, but have now completed. The content is still current. The Paralympic Games in Tokyo were a source of pleasure for many people in Flanders and far beyond, whether they have a disability or not. Commendable and worth mentioning, is the coverage by the VRT with a dedicated programme airing …

Wheelchair basketball in Belgium is a crying shame…

By Servaas Kamerling It was the British poet Thomas Gray that said, 'Youth smiles without any reason. It is one of its chiefest charms.' Youth smiles are not evident during youth trainings at Leuven Bears wheelchair basketball. Instead grimaces and gritted teeth belie the determination and the will to perform. Whether the athlete is 10, …

Citius, Altius, Fortius- Communiter

By Servaas Kamerling On the 20th of July 2021, the Session of the International Olympic Committee approved a nice change in the Olympic motto that recognises the unifying power of sport and the importance of solidarity. The word “together” after a dash, has been added to “Faster, Higher, Stronger.” I for one, welcome this change especially with …

Don’t feel a thing

For a non-paraplegic it’s difficult to know,That below the waist, messages don't flow. Through trauma broken, nerve-endings dead,Commands disrupted, not reaching the head. Nothing to move, nothing to twitch,Nothing to feel, nothing to itch. Feet have no clue whether grass or sand,Touching the skin is alien to the hand. Below the lesion, a prod or …

I have a dream…

This is a poem I wrote towards my employer, celebrating inclusion and equality on Martin Luther King day, 18 January. I would love to hear your feedback I have a dream... Of a world without barriers, of circumvented stair,Everywhere accessible by foot, crutch and chair. To enter, to function, to work and to play,At a …