Portugal city with project for disabled basketball players

Sixty basketball players with intellectual disabilities from five municipalities in Viseu are participating in the "Dribbling the Difference" project, which the organisation intends to expand to the entire district in the coming years.

By TPN/Lusa, in News · 30 May 2026, 12:03 · 0 Comments

The second edition of this inclusive project, which was presented today, involves athletes from seven private social solidarity institutions (IPSS) in the municipalities of Moimenta da Beira, São João da Pesqueira, Santa Comba Dão, Tondela, and Viseu.

"We started with two IPSS, Pesqueiramiga (from São João da Pesqueira) and Artenave (from Moimenta da Beira), and this year we already have seven," with the number of participants increasing from 20 to 60, explained Bruno Ferreira of the Viseu Basketball Association to journalists.

According to the project's mentor, there are already requests for new institutions to join in the next edition, namely from Carregal do Sal and Viseu, fueling the dream of growth for this project, which aims to promote sport as a tool for inclusion, social participation, and personal development.

For the second edition, athletes from Pesqueiramiga and Artenave were joined by others from the Cerebral Palsy Association of Viseu, the Portuguese Association of Parents and Friends of the Mentally Disabled Citizen (with the Activity and Capacity Building Centres for Inclusion in Viseu and Santa Comba Dão), Vários de Tondela, and the Equestrian and Psychomotor Association of Viseu.

Each edition takes place in stages. After the first stage in Moimenta da Beira and the second in São João da Pesqueira, the third is taking place today in Santa Comba Dão, followed by Tondela on 29 June, and the closing event in Viseu on 23 July.

“The dream is, in the future, to have so many non-profit organisations with us that we could divide them so that [the project] could be happening simultaneously in various locations in the district. We will get there,” said Bruno Ferreira.

The president of the Viseu Basketball Association, José Oliveira, stated that “the fundamental idea of this project is to be inclusive, but not just in words,” providing people with access to the sport so they can enjoy all the benefits of physical activity and the camaraderie these moments offer.

“In Dribbling the Difference, there are no winners. Everyone is a winner,” he emphasised.