It is all about creating opportunities for individuals with disabilities to socialize in an inclusive environment for Stephane Leblois, Founder and Head Coach of The Washington Wolfpack RFC. The first unified rugby team in the United States, The Wolfpack set off on the prowl back in 2019.
Leblois found his inspiration for the Wolfpack in both his passion for disability rights and his own personal growth that was facilitated by rugby. After working in the disability rights and services field for the past decade, he decided to focus on creating an opportunity for individuals with disabilities to socialize in an inclusive environment. He was able to find his solution in unified rugby, a slightly adapted version of the game that allows players with and without intellectual and developmental disabilities to play rugby together and compete on the same pitch.
This version of the sport was created to be inclusive of players of all abilities by making slight adaptations to the laws of the game, making it safer and more equitable for all of those on the pitch. Play can be seen in multiple formats, ranging from tag or touch to adapted full-contact.
Trust Rugby International, a global union of unified rugby teams based in Scotland, gave Leblois the tools he needed to get the Wolfpack up and running. Ever sense, aspiring rugby players in the Washington area have had the opportunity to not only learn a new sport, but forge friendships with one another and grow personally.
The Wolfpack’s practice plan is no different from any other mainstream rugby team in the US. Their time is spent split between both game-based drills and rugby-based fitness that Leblois says, “Is to keep all players on an upward learning trajectory while also providing instruction that is dynamic and that players will stay engaged with over the course of our practices.”.
Even now, amidst the pandemic, the Wolfpack are focused on staying fit through weekly virtual training sessions. Like most teams, there are limitations on the ability to run drills over a virtual platform, however, the coaching staff offers some individualized or small group instruction to their players.
Unified rugby, once only present in the UK, is now being played in the US, Europe, New Zealand, and Canada. And now, following in the wolfpack’s footsteps, several more teams have taken to the pitch on the US East Coast. With roughly 40 to 60 million Americans with disabilities in our community, many of whom are looking for opportunities to learn something and make new friends, Leblois says he imagines, “In the coming years, more teams like ours will pop up out of the sheer demand for this type of programing.”
Leblois also dedicates his time and understanding for diversified rugby as a member of the USA Rugby Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee (DEI). Since its inception in 2019, the DEI Committee has focused on social and inclusive issues including matters of race, feedback to World Rugby on transgender athlete policy, IDEA webinars to USA Rugby members and virtual town hall discussions addressing social issues in rugby today.
When asked, Leblois’s advice to anyone looking to start their own team is to get creative, focus on player development and ensure that your payers get the support they need to be successful and meet the milestones you create as a coach over the season. He emphasizes that the barriers to starting a team are low and that, “the driving concept is simple: how can you make rugby accessible, safe and fun to players of all levels?”, he goes on to say, “Any experienced coach will tell you that players learn at different speeds and respond to different styles of coaching. Unified Rugby takes that very basic concept and challenges coaches to create a learning space in which everyone is at the same level and learning at the same speed.”.
Leblois’s goal in 2021 is to create more resources and to spread greater awareness of the sport to the public so that interested coaches, players and fans feel comfortable coming to him for, tools, advice, and answers to questions about unified rugby programing.
