In the 1970s, some public schools began providing sports lessons for pupils with disabilities. The majority of the children had physical disabilities that greatly hindered their movement (
muscular dystrophy,
cerebral palsy) and were not capable of participating in mainstream sports. This type of sport was well suited for adaptation because it could be played by solely utilizing the maneuverability of the
wheelchair, and not focus on
gross motor movement and muscle power. There are similarities with
floorball. Power Hockey is also referred to as "Electric Wheelchair Hockey", and the name has some history behind it. With its great similarity to
ice hockey, it was initially just called "Wheelchair Hockey", but later, in order to indicate the use of an electric wheelchair, the word "electric" was added. Power Hockey (Electric Wheelchair Hockey) began to receive public interest in the late 1980s, when tournaments were established in Germany and the Netherlands. However, it wasn't until the 1990s that power hockey began to receive international attention. In 1998, the first ever World Games for Power Hockey were held in Utrecht, Netherlands. In 2001, a big international Power Hockey tournament took place in Minneapolis. In the following years, World Championships, European Championships, and more tournaments were formed in other European countries such as Belgium, Finland, and Italy. ==Positions==