Murderball

Perhaps you have never heard of murderball. I hadn't. That's what quadriplegic rugby was called when originated by the Canadians in 1977. As the U.S. Quad Rugby Paralympic Team spokesman Mark Zupan says, "That name doesn't work very well when you're trying to get corporate sponsors."

I know this from the 2005 Academy Award-nominated documentary film "Murderball."^* When an old college friend surfaced recently after 40 years (into my ken, that is), he mentioned the film and, ahem, the fact that his son was one of the directors. My wife and I watched it last night, and we were powerfully affected. The film is many things: fascinating, entertaining, instructive, inspiring...and funny. I highly recommend it.
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* Directed by Henry Alex Rubin and Dana Adam Shapiro. Abbreviated plot outline from IMDb.com: "A film about quadriplegics who play full-contact rugby in Mad Max-style wheelchairs - overcoming unimaginable obstacles to compete in the Paralympic Games in Athens, Greece." MPAA rating: "R for language and sexual content; Rated PG-13 for sexual references and language (edited version)."