Handball stakeholders are set to meet with the Commission for the Rights of Persons with Disability (CRPD) to find a way forward after a teen athlete was 'barred' from playing handball because of his wheelchair.
Times of Malta reported on Saturday on how Thomas Mifsud, 16, who has spina bifida, says he was abruptly told he could not serve as a reserve goalkeeper for his team, Kavallieri Handball, after he said he had been chosen by his coach and trained with the team for months.
He was told that his wheelchair may endanger other players if allowed on the field of play.
The Malta Handball Association maintains that it has done its utmost to include Thomas but that it must abide by the rules put in place to maintain the safety of other players.
Mentioning Thomas' story on her own initiative in parliament on Tuesday, Inclusion Minister Julia Farrugia Portelli said that it "hurts" to see people who didn't let their less-than-ideal circumstances get the best of them treated this way.
"Instead of hiding away in a corner, he sought to make the best out of a less-than-stellar situation and better himself. This boy trains Monday through Sunday, I don't think any one of us in this room does as much exercise as Thomas does," Farrugia Portelli said.
She said that while she had no intention of interfering with the clubs and their rules, the CRPS has taken the initiative to host a meeting between all the parties concerned in this dispute and lead the conversation to "finding a solution".
"I understand that there are safety concerns, but using that same argument do they not pose the same risk as when he joins in training?" the minister questioned.
"I really do appeal to everyone, we must find a way to empower these teens. If we are going to remain too rigid. We are going to have problems."
PN MP Mario de Marco also brought up Thomas' story in parliament on Tuesday, saying he knew how hard his parents have worked to give him every opportunity in life and how determined Thomas himself is to not allow obstacles to get in his way.
de Marco welcomed the minister's efforts to bring all of the parties together in the interest of finding a solution.
"If we truly believe in the spirit of inclusion, we must help this boy in everything he wishes to achieve," de Marco said.
Thomas told Times of Malta he was frustrated at being made to sit on the sidelines when he wanted to play and believes he has genuinely earned a spot on the team.
He said he trains seven days a week, practising swimming four times a week, handball twice a week and hitting the gym every single day.
Thomas recently also joined ultra-athlete Neil Agius in an unassisted nine-hour swim.