Randy Snow, a three-time Paralympic medalist, was the second wheelchair tennis player to be honored with enshrinement to the International Tennis Hall of Fame. In addition to his successful tennis career, Snow was a competitive basketball player and racer. Off the courts, he was an influential leader in the development of wheelchair tennis and a tireless advocate for improving the quality of life for people with disabilities. Snow’s Hall of Fame enshrinement was a posthumous recognition of his achievements and contributions to the sport. He passed away on November 19, 2009 in El Salvador while volunteering at a wheelchair tennis camp.
Whether he was delivering a fierce forehand, patiently teaching a young player, or motivating an entire room of people at a speaking engagement, it’s safe to say wheelchair tennis superstar Randy Snow put all he had into his activities.
Originally from Terrell, Texas, Randy was a talented, determined athlete throughout his life. As a teenager, Snow was a ranked tennis player in the state of Texas, but when a farming accident left him a paraplegic at the age of 16, he refused to let the physical challenges fade his competitive spirit and athletic talent. Randy committed himself to wheelchair sports, to inspiring athletes worldwide, and to improving the quality of life for people with disabilities.
Snow won 22 major tournament titles during his career, and he achieved a world ranking of No. 2 in singles and No. 1 in doubles. For many years in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Snow was a member of the United States Men’s World Cup team, a competition similar to Davis Cup. Snow was named ITF Wheelchair Tennis Player of the Year in 1991 and USA Wheelchair Athlete of the Year in 2000.
As a man of seemingly endless talent – and a nonstop drive to apply himself wholly to every situation, tennis was not Snow’s only platform. In the 1990s, he served on the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and he worked extensively with the National Council on Disability. Snow conducted wheelchair tennis camps all over the world in nations ranging from Bolivia to Thailand, and he developed, managed, and taught at the "Randy Snow Wheelchair Tennis Camps" across the United States. In addition, he developed the USPTA certification for Wheelchair Tennis.
In 1984, the Summer Olympics added a men's 1500-meter wheelchair race as an exhibition event, which was to be the first Paralympic event ever to appear before a large audience. Snow trained relentlessly for the event, ultimately earning a silver medal. He went on to win gold medals in the 1992 Paralympics in Barcelona for singles and doubles (with Brad Parks) wheelchair tennis, and he was a member of the bronze medal-winning wheelchair basketball team at the 1996 Olympic Games. In 2004, he became the first Paralympian to be inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame.
