The NCAA has a lasting and growing impact on the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Each Olympic and Paralympic cycle, hundreds of current and former NCAA student-athletes represent their nations on the world stage. At the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, over 1,300 athletes with ties to nearly 300 NCAA schools across all three divisions competed for 125 countries. Together, they brought home more than 380 medals, including 148 golds. In total, over 300 NCAA-affiliated athletes stood on the podium at the 2024 Olympics and Paralympics.
For Team USA, the NCAA’s influence is profound. At the Paris 2024 Olympics, 67% (397 of 592) of the U.S. team had connections to an NCAA championship or emerging sport.
Many NCAA-affiliated athletes are expected to compete at the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics and Paralympics. NCAA winter sports like ice hockey and skiing are among the most direct collegiate connections to the Winter Games, with Team USA women’s hockey again featuring a roster built entirely from NCAA experience. The power of college sports is also reflected through athletes who transition into new Olympic and Paralympic sports beyond their collegiate playing days.
Behind the numbers is an ongoing collaboration focused on supporting athletes and growing Olympic and Paralympic sports on college campuses.
This enduring relationship is strengthened by a cooperation agreement between the NCAA and the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee established in 2019. The agreement continues to drive collaborative initiatives that support Team USA athletes while enhancing collegiate sports for future generations.
Through this partnership, the Olympians & Paralympians Made Here campaign was created to promote Olympic and Paralympic sports on campuses across the country. Developed in collaboration with the USOPC Collegiate Advisory Council, this campaign aims to build national awareness and support for Olympic and Paralympic opportunities within college sports.
The college footprint on the U.S. Paralympic Team is larger than you think.
At the Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020, more than 50% of the U.S. Paralympic Team competed collegiately en route to representing our country in Japan. And, in 2022, this collaboration led to the launch of the Para-College Inclusion Project, designed to foster greater awareness and participation in adaptive sports across the collegiate landscape. This initiative evolved into an awareness committee and three tactical teams dedicated to wheelchair basketball, wheelchair tennis, and para track and field. These teams identified key areas for improving para sports infrastructure, such as shared operations, formal partnerships and increased cooperation.
Learn more about the USOPC Paralympic Sport Development program and Olympians and Paralympians Made Here campaign or explore the journey to becoming an NCAA student-athlete.
