Stan Labanowich
Achievements
Adaptive Sports Hall of FameStan Labanowich exerted a dramatic worldwide impact on wheelchair sports through his unswerving dedication to democratic principles—and, by extension, to the right of athletes to self-govern. He was one of the founding members of the Wheelchair Basketball Division of the International Stoke Mandeville Games Federation (ISMGF), which was the forerunner of the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF), the current governing body for wheelchair basketball.
He served skillfully as the democratically elected chairman of the Basketball Division from 1976 to 1988 and later as a member of the IWBF’s Executive Committee from 1988 to 1992. A champion of ethics in both the governance and competitive dimensions of wheelchair sports, he was also an expert on the rules, serving frequently as the technical officer in international competitions, including the 1992 Paralympic Games.
For over two decades, Stan was a member of the National Wheelchair Athletic Committee and was influential in developing the legislation and bylaws governing wheelchair sports. His superior intellect and diligent work ethic served the sport well on both the national and international scenes during the formative years.
Stan’s achievements were not limited to the boardroom. He coached many athletes who earned berths on Team USA—medal-winning athletes who set world records at all levels of international competition during the 1960s and ’70s. He coached the famous University of Illinois men’s and women’s teams to prominence at the annual National Wheelchair Games and led the Fighting Illini Gizz Kids to National Wheelchair Basketball Tournament Championships in 1969 and 1970.
He was a member of the USA Team’s coaching staff from 1968 through 1976. Stan coached the USA men’s basketball team to the gold medal at the 1972 Paralympic Games in Heidelberg, Germany.