TITLE:
Physical and Cultural Barriers to Sports Participation for People with Disabilities in Senegal
AUTHORS:
Souleymane Diallo
KEYWORDS:
Disability, Physical and Sports Activities, Exclusion, Sports Infrastructure, Social Perceptions
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Applied Sciences,
Vol.16 No.6,
June
29,
2026
ABSTRACT: Differences among people are often sources of inequality and even social exclusion, which international organizations and governments strive to address. Thus, we examined the situation of people with disabilities in Senegal regarding sports participation within the context of promoting sports for all. In this context, data collected through semi-structured interviews with 23 individuals-including 9 with physical disabilities (5), sensory disabilities (3 albinos and 1 visually impaired person), 1 autistic, a general practitioner, and 3 officials (1 from the Ministry of Sports, 2 from the FSAPH)-revealed several obstacles. On the one hand, objective limitations such as reduced mobility, visual impairment, deafness, anesthesia, amnesia, etc., lead to misinterpretations of actions during sports activities. Furthermore, the inadequacy of infrastructure is a lamentable reality. On the other hand, in addition to the fear of rape, assault, and killings of albinos for mystical purposes, people with disabilities in general suffer from fatalistic and/or malevolent social perceptions. Given all these difficulties, people with disabilities in Senegal are excluded from or have excluded themselves from sports participation.