Denise Hutchins

Denise Hutchins headshot

2019

As a physical therapist working with a variety of disabilities in rehabilitation, Denise began her career in sports for the disabled as a board member for the newly created Greater Oklahoma Wheelchair Athletic Association (now Oklahoma Adaptive Sports Association). She then became a coach for the GOWAA track and field team and meet director for the Oklahoma Invitational Wheelchair Games.

In the late 1980s she became an athletics official for National Wheelchair Athletic Association and USA Track and Field, progressing to become a Referee at the 1996 Paralympics in Atlanta. Denise served as a meet director and/or track and field coordinator for local, regional and national meets, including the 1994 National Junior Wheelchair Games in Oklahoma. In 2000, she and Katrina Shaklee developed the Endeavor Games where she served as track and field coordinator. She was also the founding coordinator for the Turnstone Endeavor Games in Indiana.

Beginning in 1988, she served 21 years on the USA Track and Field Committee on Athletics for the Disabled, including eight years as the Vice Chairman. In 2016 she completed her third term as Vice Chairman of the board of directors for Adaptive Sports USA, having had the opportunity to serve on the board with three Chairmen, Paul DePace, Barbara Chambers and Gregg Baumgarten.

In 1990 she became a certified National Classifier for NWAA and began courses for international certification. With her children getting into sports themselves, she decreased her international activities during the late 1990s – early 2000s, but returned in 2005 to complete her international certification in Athletics Classification.

In 2010, she became a Chief Classifier for IPC Athletics, handling the management and administration of the classification process at competitions. Later Denise served as an IPC Athletics Classification Educator, training medical and technical personnel interested in pursuing the role of Athletics Classifier at the National and International levels.

Denise remained active with Adaptive Sports USA on the competition committees to enhance Junior Nationals, the series of Sanctioned events and international competition. She was a long-time member of the Board of Directors for Adaptive Track and Field USA.

Denise’s impact on sports for the disabled on a local, national and international level was immeasurable.