SAN DIEGO — Practice starts when David Wagner tapes his tennis racket to his hand.

Wagner was paralyzed from the mid-chest down in 1995 after a beach accident.

What You Need To Know

  • David Wagner is a professional Paralympic wheelchair tennis player

  • His return to Paris marks his sixth Paralympics

  • Josh George is a five-time Paralympian, and believes more people are excited about the Paralympics this year, coming off the energy of the Olympics

  • The Paralympics is happening now through Sept. 8

His road to rehabilitation led him to pick up a tennis racket and compete; now, he’s a world-renowned wheelchair tennis player, returning to his sixth Paralympic Games in Paris.

“You get a little more butterflies every day when you wake up,” Wagner said. “But for me, my prediction, my hope is that I play the best I can play.”

Wagner already has eight Paralympic medals, including three gold medals for Quad Doubles in wheelchair tennis. He hopes everyone watching can appreciate the talent and discipline all the athletes have put into their sport.

“Trying to stay in shape, stay strong, stay healthy,” he said. “Keep the shoulder maintenance; that’s important because they’re like our legs. I love every moment of it.”

Josh George is a retired five-time Paralympian, winning bronze, silver and gold medals from a career in professional wheelchair racing.

“We have four of my five Paralympic medals right here. The fifth one is actually with my parents in a shadow box in Virginia,” George laughed. 

George was injured when he was four years old and started wheelchair racing when he was eight. This will be the first time he hasn’t competed at the games in almost 20 years.

“Paris blew it out of the water. I feel like there hasn’t been this much buzz and excitement around the games since London in 2012,” George said. “Covid sort of threw it off, unfortunately. Tokyo would have done a great job, I’m sure.”

George believes more people are excited about the Paralympics this year, fueled by the energy of the Olympics, relief that the pandemic is over, and the convenience of watching on-demand. 

As America gets ready to host the next Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2028, he hopes the enthusiasm will only continue to grow as people see what these athletes are capable of.

“You have these absolutely insane athletes that are doing things a little differently,” George said. “The excitement around the Paralympics in the U.S. has always kind of up and down; and this year, I think we have the first opportunity to really pin it up there and make it an event to remember.”

Even though Wagner has 24 years of Paralympic experience, he says the honor of representing the U.S. at the games never diminishes.

“Our closing ceremonies are the end of the entire Paris 2024. And it’s pretty cool to be part of that as a participant and a spectator and just know that I’m part of something so much bigger than just wheelchair tennis,” he said.

Wagner turned 50 earlier this year and says he wants to be an example of continuing sports as a lifelong activity. 

The Paralympics is happening now through Sept. 8.