Ryan Neiswender

Classification: 2.0

Position: Guard

Hometown: Lebanon / Hershey, Pennsylvania

Alma Mater: University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (Kinesiology)

Paralympic Gold: Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games

Ryan is a Paralympic wheelchair basketball player who is going to compete in the 2020 Tokyo Games. He was born into a family that loves sports and loves to compete. When Ryan was a senior in high school he made the Men’s National Team and has competed with Team USA for the past 8 years. After high school, Ryan had the opportunity to go to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where he was a 4-Time All-American and national runner-up. Following his time in collegiate sports, he went over to Europe to play professionally.

Ryan is married to his beautiful wife Lauren who competed at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign on their women’s soccer team.

Career Highlights

• Paralympic Gold Medalist: Captured Gold with the U.S. Men’s National Team at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.
• World Champion: Anchored Team USA to a Gold Medal victory at the 2022 IWBF World Championship.   
• Collegiate All-American: Starred for the University of Illinois Fighting Illini, earning 4-time All-American honors while leading the program to national championship contention.
• Parapan American Champion: Earned Gold with Team USA at the 2019 Parapan American Games in Lima, Peru.
• Keynote Speaker & Advocate: TEDx speaker and corporate keynote presenter focusing on building mental toughness, inclusive leadership, and high-performance team dynamics.