Paul Schulte

Paul Schulte (born 1979) is an American Paralympic wheelchair basketball player.

Biography Schulte grew up in Manchester, Michigan with a love of sports. In 1989, he was in a car accident at the age of 10 in which he was paralyzed from the waist down. At 14, he was introduced to the Paralympic sport of wheelchair basketball. Throughout high school, Paul played for the varsity division Grand Rapids Junior Pacers. The Pacers won two varsity division national championships during this time, with Schulte named as the National Most Valuable Player in his senior year.

In 1997, he accepted a full ride athletic scholarship to the University of Texas at Arlington. At 18 years old, during his freshman season at UT Arlington, Schulte was invited to try out for the U.S. men's Paralympic wheelchair basketball team. He won a position on the team and his basketball career began to skyrocket. Schulte went on to become a four-time Paralympian competing at the Games in Sydney, Beijing, London, and Paris. Additionally he won two world championship titles and in 2002 was awarded tournament MVP at the world championships in Kitakyushu, Japan.

During his senior year of college, Schulte's team won the Intercollegiate Championship where he received Most Valuable Player, Academic All-American, and Sportsmanship honors. UT-Arlington later retired his jersey number 20 in his honor.

He went on to become a five-time national champion with the National Wheelchair Basketball Association and was named MVP for the championship division three times. Along the way, Schulte has been nominated for both the Laureus and ESPY awards as Best Male Athlete of the Year with a Disability.

Schulte was invited to the White House on numerous occasions Presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama and Joe Biden. Schulte retired from the national team from 2015 to 2023 and served as a broadcast commentator for NBC Sports during the Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.

Eight years after retirement, Schulte returned to competitive wheelchair basketball where he made his fourth Paralympic Team for the Paris 2024 Games where the team would go on to win their third consecutive gold.

Schulte graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering and currently serves as president for adaptive sport equipment manufacturer Top End Sports LLC (Pinellas Park, FL). Schulte and his high school sweetheart Meghan Greenwald were married in 2000 and their son Brady was born in 2010.

Major achievements

U.S. Men's National Team, Paralympic Games

2000: Bronze Medal - Paralympic Games, Sydney Australia 2008: Paralympic Games, Beijing China 2012: Bronze Medal - Paralympic Games, London England 2024: Gold Medal - Paralympic Games, Paris France

U.S. Men's National Team, IWBF World Championships

1998: Gold Medal - IWBF World Championships, Sydney Australia 2002: Gold Medal - IWBF World Championships, Kitakyushu Japan 2002: Most Valuable Player - IWBF World Championships, Kitakyushu Japan 2006: Silver Medal - IWBF World Championships, Amsterdam Netherlands 2010: Bronze Medal - IWBF World Championships, Birmingham England 2014: Silver Medal - IWBF World Championships, Incheon South Korea

Men's Championship Division, National Wheelchair Basketball Association

4x National Champion, Dallas Wheelchair Mavericks, Championship Division I 1x National Champion, Orlando Wheelchair Magic, Championship Division I 3x Most Valuable Player, Championship Division I, National Wheelchair Basketball Tournament Hall of Fame, Class of 2022

Intercollegiate Division, National Wheelchair Basketball Association

1999: Most Valuable Player, Intercollegiate National Tournament 2002: National Champion, Intercollegiate National Tournament 2002: Most Valuable Player, Intercollegiate National Tournament 2002: Sportsmanship Award, Intercollegiate National Tournament 2002: Academic All American, Intercollegiate National Tournament Retired Jersey #20, University of Texas at Arlington

Junior Division, National Wheelchair Basketball Association

1995: National Champion, Junior National Wheelchair Basketball Tournament 1997: National Champion, Junior National Wheelchair Basketball Tournament 1997: Most Valuable Player, Junior National Wheelchair Basketball Tournament

Other

2002: ESPY Award Nominee, Best Male Athlete with a Disability, Los Angeles USA 2002: Laureus Award Nominee, Best Male Athlete with a Disability, Monaco 2016: Sports Analyst for NBC Sports, 2016 Paralympic Games, Rio De Janeiro 2021: Sports Analyst for NBC Sports, 2020 Paralympic Games, Tokyo Game Winning 3-Pointer: Wheelchair Basketball - USA v GB 2000 Sydney Bronze Medal