Author: Sam Brady, 25th August 2021

In the last month, I was lucky enough to be invited to speak on the International Spinal Cord Society’s (ISCoS) podcast, SCI Care: What Really Matters. This was a really wonderful experience, partially due to the enthusiasm and interest from those at the society, and the chance to share my research with a new audience. Despite how fascinating Paralympic or adaptive sport history is, this topic remains a niche interest to many, not considered a ‘typical’ historical avenue of inquiry. However, due to the historical development of wheelchair sports as a method of rehabilitation, this history is of interest to those researching medicine, rehabilitation and spinal cord injury. 

You can listen to the podcast here:

So far, the majority of my academic reach has remained in the history of sport, such as contacts I’ve made with the British Society of Sport History (incidentally, a talk I gave for them was recorded and uploaded as a podcast, the link for which you can find below). The podcast with the International Spinal Cord Society presented a wonderful opportunity to broaden my own intellectual horizons, alongside (hopefully) making those in the medical field aware of this historical narrative. As a social historian foremost, the ability to advertise a new historical perspective and approach was a delight, and the reception to the podcast has already been wonderful. 

Furthermore, the public nature of these podcasts hopefully means that others will be able to access them, ideally ensuring knowledge of Paralympic history is known to more people! 


Further, the link to my British Society of Sport History podcast (a recording of a paper I presented) can be found at this link: https://soundcloud.com/bssh-london/sam-brady-sporting-wheelchairs