LEXINGTON, Ky. (June 25, 2021) – The American Volleyball Coaches Association recognized former Oklahoma Christian basketball player Roderick Green on Friday for his contributions to the sport of volleyball.

Green, a three-time U.S. Paralympic athlete in two sports (track and field and volleyball) was named as USA Volleyball's Male Sitting Player of the Year in 2016, the year he represented the U.S. in the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro.

The AVCA Diversity Development Team's History Commission is in the process of recognizing athletes like Green in an effort to "explore the contributions of Black Americans to the sport of volleyball," according to the AVCA website. Since March, the AVCA has done a weekly reveal highlighting one of 40 Black Americans "for their pioneering and influential efforts in the sport of volleyball."

The story of Green, originally from West Monroe, La., has often been told at OC. He was born with genetic fibula hemimelia, a condition that, according to the National Institute of Health, has a prevalence is estimated at one in 50,000. His leg, without a right ankle or fibula, was amputated below the knee at age 2.

That didn't keep him from becoming a basketball standout and he received a scholarship in 1997 to play at OC. He competed using a prosthesis made of lightweight, carbon-composite material similar to that used by NASA in space vehicles. He attended OC until 2002 and received his degree in physical education and nutrition in 2004.

During his time at OC, he began competing in track and field and made the U.S. team for the 2000 Paralympics in Sydney and the 2004 Paralympics in Athens. In 2004, he won a silver medal in the 200 meters, a bronze in the 400 meters and a bronze in the long jump. Green later coach track and field athletes in the 2008 and 2012 Paralympics.

He joined the U.S. Men's Sitting Volleyball Team – which trains in Edmond, Okla., at the University of Central Oklahoma – in 2007. In the Rio Games, he played middle blocker for the U.S. and was the team's leading scorer. In addition to the Paralympics, Green has competed in numerous international events including the ParaVolley World Championships and the Parapan American Games, in which he was a four-time medal winner.