Our Story

Angel City Sports began with a simple question.

In June 2013, Clayton and Ezra Frech stood on the track at the Endeavor Games in Oklahoma City and wondered: “Why do we need to come to tornado alley to run, jump, and throw? Why aren’t there more adaptive programs like this in Southern California?”

That question launched a journey to bring Paralympic-style adaptive sports home, creating opportunities for youth, adults, and veterans with physical disabilities and visual impairments to compete, connect, and thrive right here in Los Angeles.

Building Something New

In October 2014, we partnered with UCLA Recreation to create Angel City Games, a multi-sport competition and celebration unlike anything Southern California had seen. The first Games in June 2015 featured 2 sports, Track and Field and wheelchair basketball, and we exceeded every expectation: 150 athletes participated, and the energy was electric. Hollywood stars Adam Sandler and Christian Bale joined pro athletes on the sidelines to cheer competitors and participate in our Celebrity Wheelchair Basketball Game. Fox Sports AM 570 broadcasted live from UCLA’s Drake Stadium, bringing adaptive sports to LA’s airwaves.

Athletes competed for the first time, families found community, and volunteers discovered a new way to make an impact. It was clear we were onto something bigger.

Expanding the Vision

Recognizing the barriers this community faces, including limited programs, expensive equipment, a lack of trained coaches, and the challenge of finding accessible opportunities across Southern California’s vast geography. We expanded our vision and became Angel City Sports, committed to addressing these challenges and sparking a Paralympic and adaptive sports movement in our community.

Where We Are Today

Since 2013, we’ve provided over 31,500 sport experiences. Today, Angel City Sports serves more than 1,000 youth, adults, and veterans annually through monthly adaptive sports clinics, four premier Paralympic-style events, regional multi-sport days, and our equipment loaner program. We’ve grown from two sports to over two dozen, from two days to year-round programming, and from one event to a thriving community.

What started as a question on a track in Oklahoma has become a movement in Southern California.

 And we’re just getting started.