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Paralympics Shatters Records, Raises the Bar
By Miki Fairley It was a time to break records. The 2004 Paralympics
in Athens, Greece, saw 304 world records and 448 Paralympic records
shattered. A total of 136 nations participated, breaking the
previous high of 123 nations represented at the 2000 Games in
Sydney, Australia. The total number of athletes3,969 (2,763 men and
1,206 women)also set a new record, breaking the previous record of
3,843 set in Sydney.
China swept the medals race, winning a total of 141, including
63 gold, 46 silver, and 32 bronze. Australia captured second place,
with 100 medals--26 gold, 38 silver, and 36 bronze.
Great Britain came next, winning a total of 94, with 35 gold, 30
silver, and 29 bronze. However, Great Britain ranked second in
golds. The British honored both Olympic and Paralympic winners in a
"Parade of Heroes" in London October 18. "This was an outstanding
performance by Great Britain's Paralympians emulating their second
place in Sydney with a smaller team and against the toughest
competition the Paralympics has ever seen," said Phil Lane, CEO of
the British Paralympic Association. "Our 35 golds and medal success
in 11 different sports has been achieved by a huge effort from both
the athletes and the Paralympic GB sports staff."
The United States was fourth, in both number of gold medals and
total number of medals, with 27 gold medals, 22 silver, and 39
bronze, for a total of 88. Germany, France, and Canada took fifth,
sixth, and seventh places respectively; however, Canada ranked
third in number of golds with 28.
Disability--and triumph over it--knows no national boundaries,
and some medal winners came from the less developed nations. For
instance, a Botswana athlete won a gold medal; Kenya won seven
medals--three gold, one silver, and three bronze; and Rwanda won a
bronze medal.
The top Paralympics multi-medalist was swimmer Mayumi
Narita of Japan, who captured seven gold and one bronze.
US swimmer Erin Popovich of Butte, Montana, was
close behind, with seven gold medals.
For the complete medals chart by country, visit the Paralympics page at the Athens 2004 web
site.
'Home Team' Multiple Medalists
Besides Popovich, other US multiple medal winners were:
Mikhaila Rutherford (Alameda, California), three
gold, one silver: swimming; Jessica Long (Dundalk,
Maryland), three gold medals: swimming; Michael
Prout (West Springfield, Massachusetts), one gold, one
bronze: swimming; Kelly Crowley (San Jose,
California), one gold, one bronze: swimming; Ron
Williams (Birmingham, Alabama), one silver, one bronze:
cycling; Paul Martin (Boulder, Colorado), one
silver, one bronze: cycling; Karissa Whitsell
(Springfield, Oregon) and Katie Compton (Colorado
Springs, Colorado), two gold, one silver, and one bronze: tandem
cycling; Marlon Shirley (Chula Vista, California),
one gold, one silver, and one bronze: track; Brian
Frasure (Apex, North Carolina), one gold, one silver, and
one bronze, track; and Cheri Blauwet (Larchwood,
Iowa), one gold and two bronze: wheelchair race.
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Brian Frasure |
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US team medals included gold in women's wheelchair
basketball; bronze, men's quad rugby; bronze in men's archery; and
bronze in women's sitting volleyball.
Highlights of the Games
Almost a million spectators viewed the games. The media were out
in force; nearly 50 broadcasters were present--another record--and
over 3,200 media representatives were accredited. A two-hour
television show featuring the Paralympics competition was shown in
the US under an exclusive agreement with Visa and the Outdoor Life
Network (OLN), which somewhat mitigated disappointment that no
major US network televised the Games. Visa International, a sponsor
of the Paralympic Games, also arranged a "Fun Day" for disabled
children in Athens, during which Paralympic athletes met the
children and demonstrated their skills in order to help the
children see what's possible despite disability. The event was part
of Visa's "Making a Difference" campaign. Visa also provided over
400 daylong passes for children from the three schools involved.
Among the athletes involved in the Visa disabled children's "Fun
Day" was Marlon Shirley from the USA.
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Ryann Fann |
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In competition, Shirley raced to the gold in the
men's 100m-T44, despite having the hiccups halfway through his
sprint and re-injuring a hamstring. Ossur teammate Brian
Frasure (USA) ran his season's best in 11.11 seconds to
capture second place. Bringing home the bronze and setting a world
record in the T43 category (double below-knee amputation or
combined arm/leg amputation) was 18-year-old Oscar
Pistorius (South Africa) of Team Ossur, who ran in 11.16
seconds.
"It was the greatest 100m ever--a race for the books," said
Frasure, as quoted by Ossur. Frasure also anchored the US 4x400
relay team which not only won the gold medal but also set a new
world record with a time of 3:27:00. Frasure is leaving the
Paralympics in a blaze of glory, as he announced his retirement.
Frasure's relay teammate, Ryan Fann, also captured
a bronze medal in the T-44 400m.
Just five days after his 15th birthday, Rudy
Garcia-Tolson (USA) of Team Ossur shattered a 12-year-old
record in his qualifying heat in the 200m individual relay with a
time of 2:42:20, shaving 3.62 seconds off the previous record.
Garcia-Tolson, who is a bilateral above-knee amputee, then flew on
to achieve the gold medal.
April Holmes, a below-knee amputee, set two
world records and garnered a bronze medal--and about 30 family and
friends from New Jersey came to see her do it. Actually, they
missed seeing her win the bronze in the long jump--Holmes didn't
tell them she was competing because she didn't think she would do
well, according to a story by Paul Mezmarich for the US Olympic
Committee (USOC). Although not a medal winner in the 100m and 200m
races (due to a lack of competition in her classification, she had
to compete against athletes with single-arm disabilities), Holmes
blazed to new world records in her classification (T44--single
below-knee amputation or able to walk with moderately reduced
function in one or both legs). She set a record of 13.13 seconds in
the 100m sprint and 26.56 in the 200m.
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April Holmes |
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Casey Tibbs (USA) made a
spectacular Paralympic debut: he won silver in the most grueling
event: the pentathlon, which includes long jump, shot put, 100m,
discus, and 400m. He also added the open T44 400m to his day. "It
was a long day--a long, long day," he said, as quoted by
Meznarich.
These are only some of the highlights, which were too
numerous to recount. For more information, visit www.athens2004.com/en; www.paralympic.org; and www.usocpressbox.org.
There were some downsides to the Games: over 600 doping tests
were conducted, and seven violations were found. Both the
International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and the European
Paralympic Committee (EPC) said, "Doping disables everything
related to Mind, Body, and Spirit'--the motto of the Paralympic
Movement." They urge "everyone involved in the [Paralympic]
Movement for sports for athletes with disabilities to play a role
in the fight against doping."
Although a spectacular Opening Ceremony greeted the start of the
Games, the Closing Ceremony was shortened as a symbol of sorrow for
a tragic road accident claiming the lives of students traveling to
see the Games.
However, the energy, glory, and inspiring display of the triumph
of the human spirit far outshone any negatives. IPC President
Phil Cravens likely summed it up best at the
Closing Ceremony: "Thank you, athletes. Your performances were
incredible. You have raised your sports to a new level... . When
you leave here, take the spirit of Athens with you, and inspire
young athletes all over the world." 
Table Of Contents - December 2004
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