One sport many Americans may have heard, but aren't as familiar with is badminton. The sport is widely played in Britain and throughout Asia, in countries such as China and Indonesia. In north Texas, there are less than four real badminton courts sprinkled throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex.

At one of the courts, Frisco Badminton, athletes of all caliber travel far and wide to learn how to play the sport. 17-year-old para-badminton player, Dawson McClure, makes the commute four hour from Tulsa, Oklahoma twice a month to train for the sport. 

"I'm top two in the nation and top 20 in the world, so I'm aiming for Paris 2024," said McClure.

The young athlete has high Paralympic hopes now that badminton is being introduced to the games for the first time this year. 

"This sport has given me a lot," said McClure. "It's where I can have fun and work hard."

Dawson's relentless hours of hard work inside the facility provides him with the best practice in preparation for international opponents. Rigorous no-mistake volley drills tacked with high endurance training keeps McClure on his toes when competing against other dwarf athletes his size.

"It's just a fun environment here and it's a sport that I can play with an even playing field," said McClure. "There's no height advantage, there's nothing like that, so I'm just coming out here having fun and giving it my all."

His trainer, Ryan Nivu, who is the World Juniors champ and also an Olympic hopeful, says the young man crushes every high expectation set forth in front of him. 

"We spend a lot of time 1-on-1 giving him drills and making sure his shots are clean, so whenever he goes to perform, he can bring it outright," said Nivu.

With a level playing field, the journey of becoming the world's greatest is in sight for the American hoping to make badminton a mainstream sport in the United states. 

"Took a lot of practice, took a lot of effort, but it's worth it," said McClure. "The outcome and results will come, just have to put in the hard work."​