Arleen Sand

Arleen Sand headshot

2004

Arleen, a trained physical therapist, began her involvement with adaptive sports in 1983 as a coach of the junior track & field and basketball teams and as a member of the Board of Directors for Greater Oklahoma Wheelchair Athletic Association. She started taking her athletes from Oklahoma to Junior National Wheelchair Games in 1987.

Arleen served as coach for the first Team USA to the Junior World Games in St. Etienne, France in 1990. She was one of the first directors to the Wheelchair Sports Board of Directors to represent and advocate for the junior programs involved in the organization and served as Vice-Chairman of the BOD for many years.

Arleen was the chair of the Junior Committee for years, providing the leadership that developed the juniors program into a quality, comprehensive program. She was instrumental in developing multiple initiatives to assist in the development of junior programming and competition, including spearheading the development of the SAMS games software program.

Arleen was also at the helm of the Junior Committee as it continued to develop the bid process for Junior National Games and ensure that the competition was sustainable over years. She also maintained the database for all of the Junior National records in archery, swimming, and track & field.

Arleen was a certified National Track & Field classifier who recruited other potential classifiers to become certified so that the Dixie Games and other regional games would have quality classifiers in their areas. She was on the Dixie Board of Directors for many years and Chairman for several years.

Arleen was games director in 2005 when the Shriner’s Hospital in Tampa hosted the Junior Nationals competition. When the Local Organizing Committee from another city that had accepted a bid to host the 2006 Junior Nationals dropped out in January of 2006, Arleen stepped forward and scrambled to host the games again, despite many of the 2005 venues not being available at that late date.

Arleen was always stepping up to make sure the junior program of Wheelchair Sports USA was a quality, educational, beneficial experience for deserving young people.