David Wagner (wheelchair tennis player)
Wagner at the 2017 US Open.
|
|
| Country (sports) |
 United States
|
|---|---|
| Residence | Chula Vista, California |
| Born |
March 4, 1974 Fullerton |
| Plays | Right Handed |
| Official website | Official website |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 751-129 |
| Highest ranking | No. 1 (7 April 2003) |
| Current ranking | No. 1 (23 May 2018) |
| Grand Slam Singles results | |
| Australian Open | W (2011, 2013, 2014) |
| US Open | W (2010, 2011, 2017) |
| Other tournaments | |
| Masters | W (2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017) |
| Paralympic Games |
 Silver Medal (2004, 2012) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 496–87 |
| Highest ranking | No. 1 (14 October 2002) |
| Current ranking | No. 1 (23 May 2018) |
| Grand Slam Doubles results | |
| Australian Open | W (2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017) |
| US Open | W (2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017) |
| Other doubles tournaments | |
| Masters Doubles | W (2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017) |
| Paralympic Games |
 Gold Medal (2004, 2008, 2012) |
David Wagner (born March 4, 1974) is an American wheelchair tennis player. Paralyzed from the mid-chest down and with thirty percent function in his hands, he competes in the Quad division. He plays by taping the tennis racket to his hand. He is currently ranked number one in the world in both singles and doubles.
Wagner was born in Fullerton, California, and grew up in Walla Walla, Washington. He played basketball in high school and tennis in college. He became a quadriplegic at age 21 while visiting a friend in Redondo Beach, California, during summer break. He and his friends were playing frisbee on the beach and Wagner began chasing after the frisbee through shallow water. He attempted to jump over a wave, but the wave caught his feet, spun him around, and he landed head-first in the sand, leaving him paralyzed. He took a year off of college and began practicing table tennis as part of his rehabilitation. He won a national competition in that sport three years in a row, from 1997 to 1999.
In 1999, at age 25, he attended a wheelchair tennis training camp set up by Rick Draney, then the top-ranked quadriplegic tennis player in the world. Wagner immediately loved the sport and by 2002 was the number one ranked U.S. quadriplegic player.
In 2002, Wagner reached number one in the ITF world rankings in quad doubles, and in 2003 he reached number one in the quad singles world rankings as well. At the 2004 Summer Paralympics Wagner won gold medal in Quad Doubles with partner Nick Taylor and silver medal in singles.
In 2007, he participated in the first Quad competition held at the U.S. Open, winning doubles with Taylor and taking second place in singles behind Peter Norfolk. Wagner had urged the United States Tennis Association to include a quadriplegic division at the event; the U.S. Open was the first of the Grand Slam tournaments to do so. The Australian Open followed suit the next year, with Wagner finishing runner-up in singles, and winning doubles with Taylor. The US Open and the Australian Open are currently the only Grand Slams to include a Quad wheelchair tennis competition. However, it was announced that a Quad Wheelchair Doubles exhibition event would be held at Wimbledon in 2018.
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