69 Team USA Paralympians hold NCAA connections – NCAA.org

The U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee announced its official roster for the 2024 Paralympic Games on Monday. The roster includes 69 former, current and incoming athletes with connections to NCAA championship sports and Emerging Sports for Women. 

The American collegiate athletics system plays an important role in Team USA’s success on the Paralympic stage. A total of 116 athletes — more than 50% of U.S. Paralympians on the 2024 roster — competed collegiately as part of their journey to Team USA, which also includes club sports and non-NCAA championship sports, as well as athletes who competed at the junior college level and in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics. 

In all, 90 schools will have one or more Paralympic athletes competing in Paris. Of the 90 schools, 69 are NCAA schools that span 42 conferences and all three divisions. When considering all collegiate sport organizations, six U.S. teams have at least 50% collegiate participation on their U.S. Paralympic rosters: paratriathlon (58%), powerlifting (50%), rowing (100%), swimming (61%), track and field (71%) and wheelchair basketball (92%). 

“We are filled with pride to unveil the Team USA athletes who will represent the United States at the Paralympic Games in Paris this summer,” USOPC CEO Sarah Hirshland said. “Their journey to the pinnacle of their careers is a testament to their unwavering dedication and relentless pursuit of excellence — attributes shared by our community of national governing bodies, coaches, families and USOPC staff who strive to help them achieve. We’ve seen what Paris has to offer the athletes of the world as they compete, and the fans of sport who celebrate the very best in elite competition. Now we eagerly anticipate the extraordinary moments and awe-inspiring Paralympic competition that lies ahead, and we can’t wait for Team USA to show the world what they can do.”

Additionally, the USOPC and NCAA office of inclusion launched a new para-college sports hub, paracollegesport.com. An online resource dedicated to supporting collegiate sports for adaptive athletes, the one-stop shop will serve as a central platform to grow adaptive sports programs across college campuses nationwide. Targeted at high school student-athletes and college administrators, the website aims to grow the footprint and pipeline of Paralympic sports in the United States. The initiative is derived from the USOPC/NCAA Para-College Inclusion Project launched in 2021 and features a collection of resources, including how to start a new on-campus adaptive program, where to find existing programs and much more.  

The 2024 Paris Paralympic Games kick off Wednesday, Aug. 28, and run through Sunday, Sept. 8. During this time, the city of Paris will welcome more than 4,400 Paralympians from around the world to compete in 22 different sports. In total, there will be 549 medal events, with Paralympic competition spanning 17 different venues. Tune in to Peacock to watch the opening ceremony Aug. 28.

A list of the 2024 U.S. Paralympic athletes with collegiate ties can be viewed here. Similar to previous Games, the roster does not reflect athletes currently registered for the Paralympic Games as alternates. Any delegation changes after the 2024 U.S. Paralympic team announcement will be reflected on teamusa.com and usopc.org.