Becca Murray, an American former wheelchair basketball player, was born on March 15, 1990. She won gold medals in the Parapan American Games three times, in 2007; 2011, and 2023. She took home two additional gold medals from the 2010 IWBF World Championship and the 2011 U25 World Championship. Murray is qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics Games as well.
Becca Murray qualifies for the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games
Becca Murray qualifies for the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games. For the first time since 2015, the United States Women’s Wheelchair Basketball team won the Parapan American Games Championship. They defeated Canada 62-56 in the gold medal match in Santiago in 2023. By winning, they earned an automatic spot in the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games. The United States team played very well against their long-time rival Canada.
They had not won against Canada in this tournament since 2015. This win made up for their loss to Canada in the 2019 final. The United States team dominated the whole tournament, winning all 5 of their games. Their other wins were against Chile (96-10), Peru (80-12), Argentina (87-26), and Brazil (60-30).
Becca Murray from Germantown, Wisconsin was chosen for the final roster after winning gold at the 2023 Parapan American Games. Murray will be playing in her 4th Paralympic Games. She was part of the United States teams that won gold at the 2008 Beijing and 2016 Rio Paralympics. Murray has won 3 gold medals total at the Parapan American Games in 2007, 2011, and 2023. She has also won 2 medals at the World Championships – a gold in 2010 and a bronze in 2022.
In her 5th Parapan American Games, Becca Murray scored 10 points, got 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals in the gold medal win. Teammate Courtney Ryan scored 12 points and had 6 assists. The United States pulled ahead in the second half, scoring the first 6 points to take a double-digit lead. After 3 quarters, they led 46-35. Canada got within 6 points near the end but could not get any closer as the United States won the gold medal.
What is the Condition of Becca Murray And her family
Becca Murray was born on March 15, 1990, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. Her parents are Richard and Linda Murray. She has one sister named Ricki and one brother named Robert. Becca Murray’s height is 5 feet 4 inches tall (1.63 meters).
Becca was born with a condition called spina bifida which caused paralysis from her waist down. She began playing wheelchair basketball at age 6 with help from an organization called IndependenceFirst. Growing up, she also played tennis, street hockey, ice hockey, and softball.
Becca kept playing wheelchair basketball. She went to a wheelchair basketball camp at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater before joining the Milwaukee Wizards team at age 12. In 2008, Becca graduated from Germantown High School in Germantown, Wisconsin. After that, she enrolled at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater to study and get a degree in special education.
How Becca Murray Started her Wheelchair Basketball Journey
Becca started playing wheelchair basketball when she was 6 years old. At age 12, she joined a club team called the Milwaukee Wizards. One of her hobbies is cheering for the Green Bay Packers football team.
In 2005, Becca was a member of the U20 team that played in the Australia Games.
In 2007, Becca won a gold medal at the Parapan-American Games. She also became the champion of the Junior League National tournament.
In 2008, Murray played in her first Summer Paralympic Games in Beijing. She helped the United States women’s wheelchair basketball team win the gold medal.
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In 2010, Murray won the gold medal at the IWBF World Championships tournament.
In 2011, Murray won another gold medal at the Parapan-American Games. She also won gold at the U25 World Championship that year. Murray was named the best player in the Women’s College Division and made the all-tournament team at the U25 World Championship.
In 2012, Becca played at the Paralympic Games in London, Great Britain and finished in 4th place. She also won the national championship in the Women’s College Division and was named the best player again.
Becca won another national championship in 2013 in the Women’s College Division.
Becca also won a gold medal at the Parapan Am Games 2015 held in Toronto, Canada.
In 2016, at the Paralympics in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, Murray was the top scorer leading up to the gold medal game. She scored 31 points in the semi-final win over Great Britain and 33 points in the gold medal victory against Germany. Because of her excellent play, she was a finalist for Team USA‘s top female athlete at the Paralympics.
How Becca took on the World Stage after Break
In 2020, Murray took a break from a wheelchair basketball competition. But she came back to try and qualify for the 2020 Summer Paralympic Games. However, because of the COVID-19 sickness spreading worldwide, Murray decided to stop playing the sport before those Games started.
On July 10, 2021, Becca Murray, who had graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and was a former national champion in women’s wheelchair basketball, won the award for Best Athlete with a Disability in Women’s Sports at the 2021 ESPY Awards ceremony in New York City.
Murray was chosen as the winner out of four finalists who had all competed in the Paralympic Games: Sam Bosco (cycling), Oksana Masters (Nordic and cycling events), and Leanne Smith (swimming).
In 2022, Murray represented the United States at the Wheelchair Basketball World Championships competition and her team won the bronze medal.
In 2023, Becca won the gold medal at the Santiago Gold Medal Match tournament, which also qualified her to compete in the upcoming Paralympic Games in Paris.
What is the Condition Becca Has
Becca Murray was born with a condition called Spina Bifida. This is a disability that affects the spine and is usually present from birth. Spina Bifida is a type of neural tube defect.
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Spina Bifida can occur anywhere along the spine if the neural tube does not fully close during development. When the neural tube does not close completely, the backbone that is supposed to protect the spinal cord does not form and close properly. This often leads to damage of the spinal cord and nerves.
