ST. LOUIS – An associate professor at Saint Louis University completed a history-making performance at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris, winning a silver medal as the first woman to play on the U.S. wheelchair rugby team.

Sarah Adam, a native of Naperville, Illinois, competed in her first Paralympic Games. She was in the starting lineup for Monday’s gold medal game against Japan.

And while Team USA came up short, 48-41, Adam tied with co-captain Chuck Aoki to lead the team with 14 tries (worth 1 point apiece), and she recorded the third-highest minutes played in the game.

“Though it’s an absolute honor to be the first female, I’ve worked hard to earn a spot on this team and to ensure that I’m seen as an athlete first,” she said.

Adam was introduced to the sport in 2013 as a non-disabled volunteer at the Disabled Athlete Sports Association in St. Louis. In 2016, she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. She began playing wheelchair rugby the following year and was invited to the national team tryout camp in December 2021.

Adam helped the national team win the silver medal at the 2022 Wheelchair Rugby World Championship. In addition, she and teammate Elizabeth Dunn were the first female wheelchair rugby players to play for Team USA in that competition.

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The following year, Team USA won gold at the 2023 Parapan American Games. Adam again made history as the first woman to ever win a gold medal in that sport. She also recorded the second-highest point total in the tournament.

When she returns stateside, Adam will continue her work as an occupational therapy assistant professor.

Eight nations competed in wheelchair rugby: Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Great Britain, Japan, and the United States. Team USA has medaled in wheelchair rugby at every Paralympic Games since the sport was added as an official medal event in 2000. The U.S. also won gold in 1996 when wheelchair rugby was a demonstration sport.

More than 4,400 athletes—which includes a record 1,983 female athletes—are competing across 22 sports for 549 medal events at the 2024 Paralympic Games.

The 2024 Paralympic Games conclude Sunday, September 8.

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