STORY: A beach accessibility project in Rio de Janeiro brought people with disabilities and reduced mobility into the waters of Copacabana on Saturday (March 7), using specialized amphibious wheelchairs and volunteer support to provide inclusive ocean access.

The "Praia Para Todos" (Beach For All) initiative, started by Instituto Novo Ser in 2008, offers adapted equipment including aquatic chairs with special wheels designed for sand and water, along with infrastructure such as beach ramps, accessible pathways, and trained volunteers who assist participants to dip and swim in the sea.

Participants, including a paraplegic woman and a lawyer who had childhood polio, swam and ducked in the water with the help of flotation devices and volunteer escorts.

Renowned Brazilian dancer and choreographer Carlinhos de Jesus, who recently began using a wheelchair due to bilateral trochanteric bursitis and gluteal tendinitis, also participated in the program.

According to the project's website, Praia Para Todos currently operates at five Rio beaches including Copacabana, Barra da Tijuca, and Ipanema, serving approximately 50 people with disabilities per day at each location and having provided around 3,500 direct services since its inception.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

SHOWS: RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL (MARCH 7, 2026) (REUTERS - Access all)

1. PARTICIPANT IN THE PROJECT "PRAIA PARA TODOS" (BEACH FOR ALL) BEING ACCOMPANIED IN THE SAND IN SPECIAL CHAIR

2. WHEELS OF THE AQUATIC CHAIR

3. PARTICIPANT AND VOLUNTEERS ENTERING WATER

4. (MUTE) DRONE SHOT OF VOLUNTEERS ENTERING WITH PARTICIPANT INTO THE SEA AT COPACABANA BEACH

5. UNDERWATER IMAGES OF PARAPLEGIC PARTICIPANT’S LEGS, BATHING IN THE SEA AT COPACABANA BEACH

6. VOLUNTEER VITOR HUGO JARDIM MUNIZ, HELPING ALICE OLIVIA MARTINS BAIETA NEVES, 67 YEARS OLD RETIRED TEACHER TO ENTER THE SEA AT COPACABANA BEACH

7. (SOUNDBITE) (Portuguese) VOLUNTEER OF THE PROJECT "PRAIA PARA TODOS,” VITOR HUGO JARDIM MUNIZ, SAYING:

"It's a free project. We're here to offer the welcoming and receptive environment that people with disabilities deserve to have a complete and quality beach experience."

8. MARTINS BAIETA NEVES BATHING

9. MARTINS BAIETA NEVES DIVING

10. (SOUNDBITE) (Portuguese) RETIRED TEACHER, ALICE OLIVIA MARTINS BAIETA NEVES, SAYING:

"Before the accident I lived at the beach, and after the accident I went a year without the beach. The first time I saw it, I cried. It's really good, really really good."

11. (MUTE) DRONE SHOT OF COPACABANA BEACH

12. (MUTE) DRONE SHOT OF PARTICIPANTS IN THE PROJECT SWIMMING

13. RENOWNED BRAZILIAN DANCER, CHOREOGRAPHER AND DANCE TEACHER, CARLINHOS DE JESUS DIVING IN THE SEA AT COPACABANA BEACH

14. (SOUNDBITE) (Portuguese) DANCE TEACHER, CARLINHOS DE JESUS, SAYING:

"Freedom, accessibility, empathy, affection and this wonderful water. How great!"

15. PARTICIPANT SWIMMING WITH ARM FLOATS SUPPORT

16. LAWYER WHO SUFFERED FROM POLIO AS A CHILD, CLAUDIA ARAUJO DA SILVA, ON A SURFBOARD IN THE SEA

17. VOLUNTEERS HELPING ARAUJO DA SILVA GETTING OUT OF THE WATER WITH A SPECIAL CHAIR

18. (SOUNDBITE) (Portuguese) LAWYER, CLAUDIA ARAUJO DA SILVA, SAYING:

"It's empowering to know that all people with disabilities have the right to an inclusive and dignified ocean swim, with accessible equipment."

19. VOLUNTEERS HELPING A PARTICIPANT GETTING OFF FLOATING CHAIR AND SWIM

20. VOLUNTEERS AND PROJECT PARTICIPANTS TALKING AND SWIMMING

21. (SOUNDBITE) (Portuguese) VOLUNTEER OF THE PROJECT "PRAIA PARA TODOS,” VITOR HUGO JARDIM MUNIZ, SAYING:

"Fostering other people's happiness. I think that somehow being part of someone's happiness and joy, making it possible, is very rewarding."

22. PARTICIPANTS AND VOLUNTEERS OF THE “PRAIA PARA TODOS” PROJECT POSING FOR PHOTOGRAPH