Full Name
Courtney Ryan
Job Title
Paris 2024 Paralympic Silver Medalist; Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Bronze Medalist
Company
USA Women's Wheelchair Basketball Team
Speaker Bio
Courtney Ryan was a Division II NCAA athlete (defender) at Metropolitan State University of Denver (women’s soccer), prior to her injury which would eventually leave her paralyzed waist down in 2010. After being slide tackled during a game, a burst blood clot caused nerve damage that left her paralyzed from the waist down.
After suffering her injury, Courtney was introduced to the Challenged Athletes Foundation in San Diego during her rehabilitation process. It is with CAF that Courtney developed her love for Wheelchair Basketball. Courtney was recruited to the University of Arizona (with a scholarship) to join their Women’s Wheelchair Basketball team in Fall of 2012 and her head coach at U of A urged the U.S. WNT to invite her to their training camp and with 30 other players at this camp, Courtney earned a spot on the National Team. She was selected to play at the 2014 International Wheelchair Basketball World Championship in Toronto about a year later as one of the youngest players on the squad in their 4th place showing.
Returning to the University of Arizona following Worlds, she earned her degree in 2015 with a B.A. in
Special Education emphasis on Rehabilitation. She received Cum Laude Honors. After graduation and wanting to be able to still continue to train with the hopes of making the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games, Courtney played professionally 2016-17 in Australia for the Sydney Metro Blues of the Women’s National Wheelchair Basketball League. After not reaching her goal on Team USA, Courtney moved back to Tucson and started her career as a volunteer assistant basketball coach with U of A as well as getting a full time paying job related to her major.
Courtney’s second taste of the best international competition in the hemisphere came when she was selected to represent the United States 5 years later at the 2019 ParaPan American Games in Lima, Peru where the U.S. won a Silver medal. Prior to the Pandemic, Courtney had been selected for the World Championship team, but just as everything else happened in 2020, the event was initially postponed until 2021 and then subsequently cancelled. At the same time, TOKyO 2020 did take place and Courtney made her first U.S. Paralympic Team where the United States won a Bronze medal. At the event she was 1st overall in assists per game and ranked in the top 10 in total field goals %, 2 point field goals made, total points and field goal attempts. On the road to Paris 2024, the international calendar of events in the three years to follow had more of regular consistency in them and Courtney has continued to get opportunities for Team USA.
The United States changed their fortune at the 2023 ParaPan American Games sweeping through the competition to win the Gold and got revenge with Canada who edged them out at the 2019 Para PanAm Games in the gold medal game. Competing in her first World Championship, Team USA secured a Bronze medal in Doha, Qatar in 2023 (event was called the 2022 IWBF World Championship). Courtney secured her spot for the 2nd time on the U.S. Paralympic Team for Paris 2024 in April 2024.
In preliminary rounds play, Courtney was tied for team scoring having led the team in 2 of their first 3
games. The team advanced to the Gold medal match after victories against Great Britain in the QuarterFinal
and China in the SemiFinal (China had beaten the U.S. in the semi at Tokyo 2020). The United States started out hot versus the Netherlands with a lead at the end of the 1st quarter, but the defending champions were able to overcome this and beat Team USA for the second time at Paris 2024. The Netherlands were the only team to beat the U.S. at the event. The U.S. earned a Silver medal.
After suffering her injury, Courtney was introduced to the Challenged Athletes Foundation in San Diego during her rehabilitation process. It is with CAF that Courtney developed her love for Wheelchair Basketball. Courtney was recruited to the University of Arizona (with a scholarship) to join their Women’s Wheelchair Basketball team in Fall of 2012 and her head coach at U of A urged the U.S. WNT to invite her to their training camp and with 30 other players at this camp, Courtney earned a spot on the National Team. She was selected to play at the 2014 International Wheelchair Basketball World Championship in Toronto about a year later as one of the youngest players on the squad in their 4th place showing.
Returning to the University of Arizona following Worlds, she earned her degree in 2015 with a B.A. in
Special Education emphasis on Rehabilitation. She received Cum Laude Honors. After graduation and wanting to be able to still continue to train with the hopes of making the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games, Courtney played professionally 2016-17 in Australia for the Sydney Metro Blues of the Women’s National Wheelchair Basketball League. After not reaching her goal on Team USA, Courtney moved back to Tucson and started her career as a volunteer assistant basketball coach with U of A as well as getting a full time paying job related to her major.
Courtney’s second taste of the best international competition in the hemisphere came when she was selected to represent the United States 5 years later at the 2019 ParaPan American Games in Lima, Peru where the U.S. won a Silver medal. Prior to the Pandemic, Courtney had been selected for the World Championship team, but just as everything else happened in 2020, the event was initially postponed until 2021 and then subsequently cancelled. At the same time, TOKyO 2020 did take place and Courtney made her first U.S. Paralympic Team where the United States won a Bronze medal. At the event she was 1st overall in assists per game and ranked in the top 10 in total field goals %, 2 point field goals made, total points and field goal attempts. On the road to Paris 2024, the international calendar of events in the three years to follow had more of regular consistency in them and Courtney has continued to get opportunities for Team USA.
The United States changed their fortune at the 2023 ParaPan American Games sweeping through the competition to win the Gold and got revenge with Canada who edged them out at the 2019 Para PanAm Games in the gold medal game. Competing in her first World Championship, Team USA secured a Bronze medal in Doha, Qatar in 2023 (event was called the 2022 IWBF World Championship). Courtney secured her spot for the 2nd time on the U.S. Paralympic Team for Paris 2024 in April 2024.
In preliminary rounds play, Courtney was tied for team scoring having led the team in 2 of their first 3
games. The team advanced to the Gold medal match after victories against Great Britain in the QuarterFinal
and China in the SemiFinal (China had beaten the U.S. in the semi at Tokyo 2020). The United States started out hot versus the Netherlands with a lead at the end of the 1st quarter, but the defending champions were able to overcome this and beat Team USA for the second time at Paris 2024. The Netherlands were the only team to beat the U.S. at the event. The U.S. earned a Silver medal.
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