DENVER – Courtney Ryan and the Team USA women's wheelchair basketball team have their sights set on Paralympic Gold.
 
Ryan, the former MSU Denver women's soccer All-American, was part of the United States' bronze medal Paralympic Games team at the Tokyo Paralympics, which were held in 2021. They're looking for more in Paris next month, with their first competition scheduled for Aug. 30.
 
"The biggest difference between those (2021) and these games is that there were a lot of first-timers – myself included – who were part of that Paralympic team," Ryan said. "We have that experience now. We know and understand what those high stakes are like. We've had some big names come out of retirement to join the team again.
 
"We're older now, have more experience and a lot more composure. We're looking forward to showcasing what this team has got."
 
Ryan's career as an MSU Denver defender came to an end during her junior season in 2010, when she was tackled in a game against Colorado Mesa. A blood clot burst, causing some of the nerves to detach from her spinal cord. She was eventually paralyzed from the waist down.
 
She soon took up wheelchair basketball and became one of the country's top players in short order. Her collegiate soccer and international basketball success contributed to her enshrinement in the MSU Denver Athletics Hall of Fame in 2022.
 
Ryan is part of two documentaries, the recently released "Ballin' Out" and the upcoming project "Adaptive." She's an assistant coach for the University of Arizona women's wheelchair basketball team. And she trains relentlessly to hone her game for Team USA.
 
"Sometimes I work out in my ballchair, shooting, doing conditioning workouts, weightlifting, interval training in the pool, plus yoga and medidation," Ryan said.
 
Team USA is decentralized, but comes together once a month, and sometimes twice a month, at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo., for four days of grueling workouts and practices. The last one before the Paralympics is this weekend.
 
Next stop, Paris.
 
The American team earned the bronze medal at the 2022 World Championships in Dubai (Ryan was named to the tournament's All-Star team), then won gold at the 2023 Para Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile.
 
Recently they traveled to China to play four games. They won them all, including beating the host country and the Netherlands, which won Paralympic gold in Tokyo.
 
"That was a really good confidence booster for our team," Ryan said. "It gave us the perspective to know that we can do this if we play it right, come out with that confidence and composure. We're looking forward to getting them in Paris."
 
In Pool B of the Paralympic event, Team USA opens against Germany – the team it defeated in the bronze-medal game in 2021 – and will also play against the Netherlands.
 
"The top three or four teams are pretty much the same (as 2021)," Ryan said.
 
After the Paralympics, Ryan plans to spend a little extra time in France to relax and enjoy the sights.
 
Then, she'll chart her next course.
 
"I love being part of Team USA," she said. "It was a goal since I was younger, growing up watching the U.S. women's national team. Obviously I got diverted and it turned out being in a different sport than I had anticipated.
 
"All 12 of us on this team have shown the determination that it takes, and we've made the sacrifices to represent Team USA," Ryan said. "What's in the future, I don't know. I'm getting older and there are a lot of injuries in our sport. Once we get through the Paris Games, we'll see what happens. I would love to keep going."