The United States men's national wheelchair basketball team began in 1955 when the Pam Am Jets brought wheelchair basketball to Europe at the International Stoke Mandville Games, albeit in the form of netball. Shortly following the Pan Am Jets' dominating performance at the International Stoke Mandville Games, wheelchair netball was switched to wheelchair basketball for all future Games.
History In 1960 the inaugural Rome Paralympic Games included wheelchair basketball as one of its initial events. During this inaugural 1960 Paralympic Games the wheelchair basketball competition was divided into two constructs: Class A for athletes with complete lesions, and Class B for those with incomplete lesions. With the 1960 Paralympic Games, the United States Men's National Wheelchair Basketball Team competed in both classifications, winning two gold medals. The same occurred in the following 1964 Tokyo Paralympic Games, as the United States Men's National Wheelchair Basketball Team claimed both gold medals.
The success of the United States Men's National Wheelchair Basketball Team has continued since those initial Paralympic Games, although the team had not won gold medals since 1988 and finally ended that drought in the most recent tournament in 2016.
The United States Men's Wheelchair Basketball Team also competes internationally in the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation's (IWBF) World Wheelchair Basketball Championships, the Parapan American Games, and the IWBF's U23 World Wheelchair Basketball Championships. The United States Men's National Wheelchair Basketball Team has enjoyed great success in each of these tournaments in addition to the Paralympic Games. They are the only team to have won the IWBF World Wheelchair Basketball Championships in three successive tournaments (accomplishing that feat twice; 1979-1986 & 1994-2002) and medalling in nearly every tournament held of the Parapan American Games, as well as the IWBF’s U23 World Wheelchair Basketball Championships.
Roster
Paralympic Games Results achieved at the Paralympic Games: 1960: Gold (2) 1964: Gold (2) 1968: Silver 1972: Gold 1976: Gold 1980: Bronze 1984: 4th 1988: Gold 1992: Gold () 1996: Bronze 2000: Bronze 2004: 7th 2008: 4th 2012: Bronze 2016: Gold 2020: Gold 2024: Gold
IWBF World Championships Year Host Place1975 Bruges (Belgium) Silver1979Tampa (United States) Gold1983Halifax (Canada) Gold1986Melbourne (Australia) Gold1990Bruges (Belgium) Silver1994Edmonton (Canada) Gold1998Sydney (Australia) Gold2002Kitakyushu (Japan) Gold2006Amsterdam (Netherlands) Silver2010Birmingham (United Kingdom) Bronze 2014Incheon (South Korea) Silver2018Hamburg (Germany) Silver2022Dubai (United Arab Emirates) Gold
Other international tournaments Parapan American Games Year Host Place1999 , Mexico City Gold2003 , Mar del Plata Silver 2007 , Rio de Janeiro Gold2011 , Guadalajara Gold2015 , Toronto Gold2019 , Lima Gold
Men's U23 World Wheelchair Basketball Championships Year Host Place1997 , Toronto Gold2001 , Blumenau, Santa Catarina Bronze2005 , Birmingham Gold2009 , Paris Gold
See also
Wheelchair basketball in the United States
References