Dr. Robert “Bob” Harney
2008
Recreation/Development | 2011
Hometown: Boston, MA
School Name: New England Disabled Sports
“Dr. Bob” as he was affectionately known, was an adaptive sports pioneer and tireless leader in parasports at the local, national and international levels. What began as an effort to teach his daughter Kimberly to ski, turned into the teaching of lessons to others in the winter of 1986-1987. That modest start was the beginning of something called the New England Disabled Sports (NEDS), a year-round program offering skiing, kayaking, waterskiing, camping, biathlon and more. Dr. Bob was an innovator in the national and international medical classification of athletes with disabilities and was instrumental in the development of the Paralympic classification system.
As a volunteer, Dr. Bob served on the International Paralympic Medical Classification team in the sports of alpine skiing and cycling and attended every winter and summer games from 1998-2010. He was also a Professional Ski Instructor Association (PSIA) certified Instructor who enjoyed countless hours working the tether lines and providing lessons at various events, including The Hartford Ski Spectacular for many years. He was a full-time practicing orthopedic surgeon in Boston and a dedicated team physician at Winthrop and Melrose High School in his hometown of Winthrop, MA for more than 20 years.
Dr. Bob served on various boards of directors, including as Vice President of Disabled Sports USA and was a founder and past president of the New England Disabled Sports..
Colleagues found his commitments to patient care unwavering and his ability to teach, mentor and lead unsurpassed. As a result he was recognized as a 2010 Hallmark Health Hero. In recognition of his outstanding volunteer service and contributions to parasport, he was a recipient of the Jim Winthers Memorial Award in 2008. His dedication and compassion for the development of adaptive recreation was recognized in the naming of the Dr. Bob Harney Adaptive Sports Center at Loon Mountain Ski Resort. New Hampshire.
