Conner Stroud

Conner Stroud is one of the most decorated young athletes in Rutherford County history. The 24 year-old Rutherfordton native is already a two-time Paralympian in Wheelchair Tennis and is currently ranked as the 33rd best Men’s Wheelchair Tennis Player in the world by the International Tennis Federation (ITF), winning numerous awards, medals and honors on his assent up the rankings.

Stroud was born with Proximal Femoral Focal Deficiency (PFFD) which left him without femurs, hips, ankles or knees. That did not stop him from picking up a racket at the age of five, however, where he played against able-bodied competitors. At age 12, Stroud transitioned to playing wheelchair tennis and immediately began climbing the ITF rankings. He won the United States Tennis Association (USTA) Sportsmanship Award in 2012. From 2013-17, Stroud played for Team USA in the ITF Junior World Cup. He helped guide the Stars & Stripes to a trio of Gold Medals in the event. Those successes on the tennis court led Stroud to receive the USTA (Wheelchair) Excellence Award in 2014.

During that time, Stroud also played against able-bodied competitors for the Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy tennis team. He found success playing in the #2 position for the Gryphons. Upon graduating from TJ in 2018, Stroud earned a scholarship to the University of Alabama to play Wheelchair Tennis Stateside. He was also ranked as high as #2 in the world in the Wheelchair Junior Division Internationally.

After 2018, Stroud made the jump to the Adult Men’s Wheelchair Division and has been a member of Team USA ever since. He has held the #2 spot on the World Cup team since 2018. Individually, Stroud has represented his country well, qualifying for the 2021 Paralympics in Tokyo and the 2024 Paralympics in Paris.

While in Paris, Stroud won his first match, upsetting Costa Rica’s Jose Pablo Gil 6-3, 6-1.

“It is incredibly special,” Stroud told members of the Parisian media following the match. “I could never have dreamed of playing on Court Philippe Chatrier and I will always remember playing on such an historic court. To play in front of a big crowd to kickstart the Paralympic Wheelchair Tennis Event here, I was quite nervous going into it. The feeling, however, was unbelievable and I will always cherish it.”

Overall in his career, through March of 2025, Stroud has amassed an impressive record of 241-100 in singles play and 148-63 in doubles. He has garnered 28 ITF Singles Championships and 35 Doubles Titles and shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon. Stroud is currently in the process of qualifying for the 2028 Paralympics in Los Angeles.