Abstract
The "ivory tower" is gradually beginning to open its doors to students with disabilities. Although scholarship on the learning experiences of students with disabilities at university is burgeoning, there is an absence of qualitative craftsmanship that has investigated the physical activity experiences of these students, most particularly in the Canadian context. Purpose: The objective of this qualitative study was to explore the physical activity experiences of students with disabilities at the University of Manitoba. Methodology and Methods: Using Pierre Bourdieu's theoretical framework as a lens to consider the bodily and social effects of disablement, I adopted a thematic analytic methodological approach to describe the activity experiences of 12 disabled students at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada. Qualitative interviews were conducted with each participant. Findings: The students described threatened body-self relationships and lacked confidence in their ability to be active at university. They also regarded on-campus physical activity as a site of both pleasure and pain, opportunity and constraint. Finally, the students explained what inclusive physical activity means to them within the context of higher education. Conclusion: By describing the movement experiences and desires of disabled university students at the University of Manitoba, this study contributes toward the ongoing struggle for inclusive higher education and physical activity.Acknowledgments: This study was funded by the University Research Grants Program at the University of Manitoba