USA co-captain Chuck Aoki has been playing wheelchair rugby for half of his life. Arguably one of the most well-known wheelchair rugby athletes in the world, Aoki discovered the sport like so many others – by watching the documentary Murderball. As a 16-year-old, he was immediately attracted to the physicality of the sport and begged his mother to let him play. According to Aoki, after months of asking, she finally relented and took him to his first practice in Minnesota.
Now a veteran on the USA roster, Aoki makes history as the first four-time US Paralympian in the sport of wheelchair rugby, previously competing and medalling at the London 2012 (bronze), Rio 2016 (silver) and Tokyo 2020 (silver) Games. In addition to his Paralympic appearances, Aoki’s 16 consecutive seasons with USA, the most of any athlete, have also earned him four world championship medals (2010 gold, 2014 bronze, 2018 bronze, 2022 silver) and three Parapan American medals (2015 silver, 2019 gold, 2023 gold).
