"I forgot that I'm disabled" interactions and sociability of teenagers with physical disabilities that practice sports]
The article analyzes the meanings assigned by teenagers with disabilities to experiences participating in group sports. The qualitative study, based on comprehensive critical analysis, drew on semi structured interviews with teens with physical disability. The results of the analysis pointed to three thematic lines: (1) the body, (2) sociability and group interactions, and (3) interactions outside the group. The sports setting features groups as a space for sociability, evoking autonomy, self esteem, and performance. Reconfiguration of the body with disability approached the able bodied ideal of the able body, which also shaped the challenges in interactions outside the group. In conclusion, the meanings legitimize hegemonic models of masculinity and femininity, and the able bodied ideal was mobilized as a common system for relevance among teenagers with physical disability that practice sports.
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