Recognizing a pair of Tennessee State paralympians.
In 2004, Ryan Fann made school history when he won a gold medal in the Paralympics. Fann teamed up with three other athletes to win the 4 x 400-meter relay in world-record time.
However, Fann's road to gold was anything but easy. At the age of three, Fann was struck by a car while playing outside of his family's house. After being rushed to the hospital, the doctors told Fann's family that the prognosis wasn't good and that his foot would need to be amputated.
Fann received a prosthetic leg and after learning to cope with his new appendage, joined the football team. Fann was so good at football that he made a high school all-star game and was named his team's MVP. It was at the game that Fann was noticed by a scout and convinced him to train for the Paralympics.
Fann came to Tennessee State and trained on the same track that produced stars like Wilma Rudolph and Mae Faggs. Fann was invited to the Paralympics in Greece in 2004 where he won his gold medal and a bronze medal in the 400-meter dash.
Fann became the first TSU male athlete since Ralph Boston in 1968 to win a medal at an Olympic sponsored event. Fann earned a bronze medal in the 400m (T44) with a time of 53.64.
Markeith Price is another paralympian that followed in Fann's footsteps while attending TSU.
As a sprinter and a jumper, Price didn't allow his disability to hold back his efforts in competing in track and field. He was born with his vision impaired and has been involved in the sport since the age of 11, since then, competing on different levels.
Back in 2005, he won gold medals for the long jump and the 600m in the IBSA World Youth Championships. He added a silver medal in 2007 in the triple jump at the IBSA World Games, and in 2009 at the IBSA Pan American Games, he won the event and added a gold medal in the 400m.
Price made another appearance in world championship competition as a member of the 2011 U.S. Paralympics Team for the International Paralympics Athletic World Track & Field Championships held in New Zealand.
According to the U.S Association of Blind Athletes Indoor Track & Field, Price held the records for the 200m, 400m, 800m, and long jump in 2012.
Diagnosed with Optic Nerve Atrophy at age 3, Price has lived with visual impairment his entire life. The condition is caused by damage of the optic nerve. Despite his circumstance, Price finished 6th in the long jump and 8th in the 400-meter dash in the 2012 Paralympic games held in London.
In 2016, he was one of more than 60 athletes chosen for the Paralympic Games in Rio.
At the team trials in Charlotte, North Carolina, Price flashed across the finish line ahead of the field in the 100-meter. He came second in the 400-meter. He represented the United States in both competitions, in the T-13 classification for the visually impaired.
In Rio, he placed 5th in the 400-meter.
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