SPORT coaches living with disability have accused the departments of sport and recreation and education of treating disabled pupils with disdain.

Signs of negligence were evident at the national under-19 schools' championships that kicked off in Pretoria yesterday.

Wheelchair basketball learners played from 9am with no water provided until the end of the first four games.

Wiseman Dlamini, one of the coaches, told Sowetan the conditions under which disabled pupils play are not satisfying. He also complained about accommodation for the players. "Our beds are not in good conditions. And we have about 30 children, most of whom use wheelchairs but are sharing one bathroom,'' said Dlamini, the Gauteng wheelchair basketball coach.

He said the event's organisers were not paying enough attention to the disabled pupils, who are currently competing at the Pretoria Disabled Club.

"You see, as we are speaking they have not delivered water and they will not do it until we call them," Dlamini said.

"The organisers only act after we complain to them."

Wheelchair basketball technical director Adam Moroke echoed Dlamini's sentiment: "We do have major problems when we have tournaments like these. Usually, the main problem is to find suitable accommodation, sometimes we can't find rooms and bathrooms that accommodate people with disability."

But project manager for sport and recreation Onke Mjo disputed the claims, saying pupils were accommodated at suitable places.

"Disabilities are different, and not all hotels can accommodate disabled people. So we opted for Pretoria High School and St Georges Hotel, which are able to accommodate people with different kind of disabilities," said Mjo.

The six-day event, which ends on Tuesday, features wheelchair basketball, basketball for intellectually impaired learners and various other sporting codes. It is being hosted by the City of Pretoria in different parts of Tshwane.