Ability360 Sports & Fitness Center hosted its fourth successful Duel in the Desert event Oct. 21 and 22. The tournament was free to the public.
Duel in the Desert, one of Ability360’s largest sporting events, hosted 18 teams with a total of 155 athletes from across the country who came to battle it out for the coveted Golden Sombrero. Twenty-seven games were played on two courts.
Teams competed in wheelchair rugby, wheelchair basketball, power soccer, stand-up amputee basketball and wheelchair lacrosse. Only Ability360 hosts stand-up amputee basketball tournaments which consist of 3-on-3 players.
Competition was fierce. The winners of the Golden Sombrero were:
Ability360 Heat for wheelchair rugby, University Of Arizona Wild Cats for wheelchair basketball, Arizona Heat Elite for power soccer, Amp 1 Team Blue for stand-up amputee basketball, Ability360 Scorpions for wheelchair lacrosse.
Duel in the Desert started as a competition between teams from Tucson and Phoenix: University of Arizona Wildcats, the Tucson Lobos, Ability360 Heat, Phoenix Wheelchair Suns, Arizona State University, Ability360 Scorpions, Campo Verde Coyotes, Ability360 United, Ability360 FC, Arizona Heat Elite, Arizona Heat Destroyers, The Limb Center and Rush Foot. It has grown to include teams such as Amp1 with athletes from all over the United States including Colorado, California, New York and Utah.
Attendance over the two-day event was estimated at more than 1,500 people. Food trucks from the Wandering Donkey, The Panini People, Circle R Farm, Grilled Addiction and Shaved Ice served athletes and visitors.
Duel in the Desert is very thankful to all of its sponsors, including the presenting sponsor”Lovitt & Touché and many community organizations: “The Ability Center,” Bank of America, “Barrow Dignity Health, “Touchstone Rehabilitation, “Vantage Mobility Inc. and “Performance Mobility. Presenting sponsors included table vendors from “ABC Medical, “Ability Dynamics, “Arizona Spinal Cord Association , “ Saguaro Scuba and Junior Adaptive Athletes in Motion.
The event concluded with a rooftop celebration at the Ability360 Center where athletes and fans gathered together for food, drinks, music, pictures and laughter after an intense set of rivalry games. The celebration continued with upbeat music from Deejay Grey the Mute, catered food from “Macayo’s, a photo booth and an open bar from “Hey Bartender.
Mark your calendar for Oct. 20 and 21, 2017. The Fifth Annual Duel will be an event you do not want to miss!