Swedish wheelchair basketball star demands equal funding from sports body

Hillevi Hansson, Sweden's only professional female wheelchair basketball athlete, has urged the country's national sports governing body to provide adequate funding for women's wheelchair basketball programmes. The demand comes after Hansson was compelled to cover her own expenses to compete for a mixed Swedish team at a recent international tournament held in Switzerland.

Hansson's situation underscores broader funding inequalities affecting female adaptive athletes across Northern Europe. While she maintains professional status in the sport, the lack of institutional financial support forced her to personally subsidise her participation in what should have been a fully-funded national team commitment.

The Swedish wheelchair basketball player has used the incident to push for systemic change, appealing to the governing body to allocate resources that reflect equal commitment to both men's and women's wheelchair basketball. Her advocacy reflects growing pressure across European sports federations to address disparity in funding and support structures for female athletes with disabilities.

The case highlights how women in adaptive sports often face compounded disadvantages, receiving less institutional backing than their male counterparts despite comparable competitive standards and international participation requirements. Hansson's public stance adds momentum to ongoing discussions about resource equity in European adaptive sports programming.