Past and present Penn State Paralympians to be celebrated

Team USA Para-cyclists and Penn Staters Shawn Morelli ( ‘98 Liberal Arts) and Brandon Lyons ( ‘12 Business) recently qualified for next month’s Paralympic Games in Paris.

The Games begin Aug. 28.

Morelli, who at 48 is acknowledged to be the face of American women’s para-cycling, will be competing in her third Paralympics.

Lyons in his first.

Both achievements, remarkable. Both stories, compelling.

Morelli, from Meadville, Pennsylvania, is a retired U.S. Army Major and a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom and the war in Afghanistan. During her Afghanistan tour in 2007, Morelli suffered devastating injuries when an improvised explosive device exploded while she was on a routine mission. Morelli sustained severe nerve damage, brain trauma and blindness in her left eye.

Lyons, a Mechanicsburg native, was the victim of a horrific swimming accident in 2014 that left him paralyzed from the chest down. The Smeal College of Business graduate’s promising business career with Ernst and Young abruptly derailed and he left to face the fact that he may never walk again.

Both went on to embrace para-sports and para-cycling as part of the healing process and both have thrived, reaching the pinnacle of their sport and representing the USA in Paris.

A road and track cyclist, Morelli is a three-time gold medalist who won gold at the 2016 Paralympic games in Rio and the 2020 games in Tokyo. She is Penn State’s first gold medalist in Paralympic history.

Lyons, a hand cyclist, is a two-time silver medalist at the 2019 Para American Games, a silver medalist at the 2019 Paracycling World Championship, and has earned multiple medals at the UCI World Cup and National Championships.

Lyons and Morelli, along with fellow and former Penn State Paralympians, will be honored at a reception and fundraiser co-hosted by Sue Paterno and Dana Harris at 7 p.m. Aug. 3 at the Pegula Ice Arena.

The event is sponsored by Rise Above, Friends of Adaptive Athletics PSU, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the revitalization and redevelopment of Penn State’s Adaptive Athletics program.

Tickets may be purchased at the door or in advance. For ticket information and Event details please visit www.riseaboveability.com.

Chuck Sypula is founder of Rise Above: Friends of Adaptive Athletics PSU.