Overcoming Disabilties Team Room

[brotherjim]

I think this is a very classy move by the Rangers and Astros.

Rangers, Astros draft paralyzed players
.By DENNIS WASZAK Jr., AP Sports Writer Dennis Waszak Jr., Ap Sports Writer – Wed Jun 8, 8:32 pm ET
NEW YORK – Johnathan Taylor and Buddy Lamothe may never play baseball again after accidents left them partially paralyzed.

That didn't matter to the teams that picked them Wednesday during the final rounds of the Major League Baseball draft.

Taylor, an outfielder from the University of Georgia, was a 33rd-round pick of the Texas Rangers, while Lamothe, a reliever from San Jacinto College, was the Houston Astros' 40th-round selection.

Taylor was left paralyzed from the chest down after he broke his neck in March during a game when he collided with teammate Zach Cone, the Rangers' supplemental-round pick Monday. Texas director of amateur scouting Kip Fagg said the team's selection of Taylor was "something we felt was right."

"We would have drafted him either way, regardless of any other circumstances involving his injury or Zach's draft status," Fagg said. "Our area scout in Georgia, Ryan Coe, has had a relationship with Johnathan since he was a high school player. The club has always liked his passion and ability as a player."

Taylor hit .335 last year as a sophomore for the Bulldogs, and was hitting .182 with two RBIs in 11 games at the time of his injury.

Fagg added that he and a few other Texas officials visited Cone during "the course of normal pre-draft activity" and gave him a Rangers jersey to give to Taylor that was signed by the entire Rangers team.

"This was truly a classy move and a great gesture on the part of the Texas Rangers organization," Georgia coach David Perno said. "J.T. is definitely a player worthy of getting drafted. He's been a big part of our program, and we are all very excited for him. When I talked to him after he got the call, he was in the middle of his rehabilitation work, laughing and having a good time and was thrilled to be drafted."

Taylor was injured March 6 against Florida State and has been undergoing outpatient treatment at the Shepherd Center in Atlanta. He also attended a pair of Georgia games since his accident.

"We're all very proud of him," said Tandra Taylor, Jonathan's mother. "It's just amazing, and when he got the call, his face lit up and we were all very excited. It was awesome news."

Cone, taken by the Rangers with the 37th overall selection, was thrilled the team also took his injured buddy.

"I was pumped up when the Rangers told me they were thinking about drafting J.T., and then I got a call saying that they had drafted him," Cone said. "I was already planning on going over to see him and now we can talk about the Rangers. This made my day. It's just awesome, and I'm so happy for him."

Lamothe, in his first season at San Jacinto, was injured last month in a diving accident in San Marcos, Texas. The hard-throwing right-hander from Lyndonville, Vt., was 0-2 with a 0.77 ERA and 28 strikeouts in 23 1-3 innings pitched.

According to an update on a website dedicated to him, the 20-year-old Lamothe is undergoing inpatient rehabilitation in Houston, with the hope he'll be released for outpatient therapy in the next few weeks.

[brotherjim]

Robin Theryoung . Colorado Springs, Colorado


Despite a love of sports and a competitive nature, Theryoung grew up believing she would be unable to play competitive sports because of her visual impairment. After learning about goalball through friends, Theryoung was introduced to the technicalities of the sport at the Sports Education Camp sponsored by the Michigan Blind Athletic Association in 1994. She fell in love with goalball because it enabled her to compete at a high level despite her disability.

Theryoung graduated from Albion College in 2002 with a degree in religious studies. She received two master's degrees from Western Michigan University, one in blind rehabilitation and the other in orientation and mobility. She graduated from both master's programs with a 4.0 GPA.

Theryoung currently works as a certified orientation and mobility specialist for the Colorado School for the Deaf and Blind. She says, "I am able to be a role model and teach other blind and visually impaired kids that dreams can come true and that they can find ways to do things they never believed they could because of their visual impairment."



Major Achievements



•2009: Gold medal-Pan American Games, Colorado Springs, CO
•2009: Gold medal- Malmo Lady Intercup- Malmo, Sweden
•2008: Gold medal, U.S. Paralympic Women's Goalball Team - Paralympic Games, Beijing, China
•2008: Gold medal, Malmo Lady Intercup, Malmo, Sweden
•2008: Bronze medal, Lakeshore International Goalball Classic, Birmingham, Ala.
•2007: Silver medal, Lakeshore International Goalball Classic, Birmingham, Ala.
•2006: Bronze medal, World Goalball Championships, Spartanburg, S.C.
•2006: Bronze medal, Malmo Lady Intercup, Malmo, Sweden
•2005: Gold medal, PanAmerican Games, Sao Paulo, Brazil
•2004: Silver medal, U.S. Paralympic Women's Goalball Team - Paralympic Games, Athens, Greece
•2004: Gold medal, Malmo Lady Intercup, Malmo, Sweden
•2003: Gold medal, Malmo Lady Intercup, Malmo Sweden
•2002: Gold medal, World Goalball Championships, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
•2001: Gold medal, PanAmerican Games, Spartanburg, S.C.
•2001: Bronze medal, Malmo Lady Intercup, Malmo, Sweden
•2000: Alternate, U.S. Paralympic Women's Goalball Team - Paralympic Games, Sydney, Australia
•1998: Bronze medal, World Goalball Championships, Madrid, Spain

[brotherjim]

City of Sacramento programs showcase U.S. Paralympics and Department of Veterans Affairs partnership
Joelle Milholm June 10, 2011

.A new partnership between U.S. Paralympics and the Department of Veterans Affairs is helping more Veterans get active in sports.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The capital city of California showed one way to support injured veterans: Give them sports.

Thursday, U.S. Paralympics, a division of the U.S. Olympic Committee, and the City of Sacramento, Department of Parks and Recreation, showcased how their partnership is able to provide and enhance recreation and sporting activities for Veterans with physical and visual disabilities. .

U.S. Congress members, local government officials, Veterans and U.S. Paralympians were on hand to witness the impact the partnership has already had as more than 50 Veterans worked out at the all-access facilities at Sacramento’s Samuel C. Pannell Community Center at River Cats Independence Field.

The City of Sacramento, Department of Parks and Recreation, is a Paralympic Sport Club, which was awarded grant funding through the department of Veterans Affairs for the 2010-2011. The support has enabled the organization to expand the availability of sports programs for Veterans with physical and visual disabilities.

Among the activities Thursday were wheelchair softball and basketball; swimming and scuba diving in the pool; racing around the tandem and handcycling track; competing in javelin, shot put and discus; and braving the rock-climbing wall.

Dan Lungren, R-Calif., was one of three members from the U.S. House of Representatives to witness the event. He said it was an important bipartisan issue to support and he enjoyed seeing the program in action.

“It’s great to see this sort of thing where the rubber meets the road and where these guys are using their competitive spirit in a way that perhaps they haven’t had . . . for a while,” Lungren said. “It can change them and helps them in their recovery. It is more than recovery; it helps them excel. It is great to see it and meet some of these guys who are involved. Wow, what great stories.

Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Calif., said he was happy to see so many people working together to trying and show their gratitude and appreciation for Veterans.

“The grants make these programs financially possible, but it is the dedication, commitment and caring of the people of these organizations that actually bring these programs to fruition,” McClintock said. “But above all, I am here to say thank you to these wounded warriors who risk more and sacrifice more for our country and everything it stands for than anyone else. Every opportunity we get, we owe it to them to say thanks.”

The program targets all wounded Veterans, from the Vietnam War to soldiers returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan. Many Veterans struggle with acclimating to civilian life and it can be even harder for those who were physically wounded in the line of duty. No organization knows more about that or does more to help than the Department of Veterans Affairs, and that is why it partnered with U.S. Paralympics.

[brotherjim]

Mark Wellman: Living with a Disability and Without Boundaries Mark Wellman


by Mike Savicki
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In the dark and quiet pre-dawn hours before the Opening Ceremony of the 1996 Summer Paralympics in Atlanta, Georgia, Mark Wellman and a team of technical experts gathered around the base of the cauldron for a top-secret torch-lighting dress rehearsal.

Only a handful of people knew later that night, in front of a packed Olympic stadium, Wellman would ascend a 120-foot rope using his unique arms-only climbing style and ignite the flame that would open the Games. The dress rehearsal went off without a hitch until a strong wind whipped through the stadium and extinguished the flame, and the team discussed possible solutions.

“It was a big enough challenge for us to figure out a way to climb the rope and carry the lit torch at the same time. I couldn’t very well be climbing the rope and drop the torch in front of 80,000 eyes,” Wellman explains. “We never figured the fuse might cause a problem.”

Working with a stunt coordinator and a pyrotechnics expert, Wellman came up with a solution.

“We decided to turn up the gas,” he jokes. “Both guys laughed and assured me that when I lit it for real later that night, there would be no question the cauldron would stay lit."

“Well, as soon as I lit it, there was a huge fireball around me. I didn’t know if I should laugh or be afraid of being blown right out of the air. I guess you could say I was lucky I didn’t singe myself or burn the rope and take a hundred foot fall in front of the eyes of the world,” he concludes.

The event was groundbreaking. When Wellman descended to his wheelchair, he was swarmed by hundreds of people who had trampled down a snow fence just to be closer to him.

“More than being a great way to open the Paralympics, I think it changed people’s public perceptions about what disabled people can do,” he offers.

Changing Perceptions of Disability
Since Wellman broke his back 26 years ago, he has been changing perceptions and pushing the limits of disability through adventure sports.

“When I first got hurt, you would hear talk about how disabled people would never be able to do this or that and there was nothing or no one to show them otherwise," he says. "When I first started working in Yosemite in the 1980s and people learned that we wanted to climb El Cap, they thought we were crazy. People just couldn’t see outside the box. Now, through avenues like the media, we are seeing the accomplishments of the disabled make the national headline news.”


As the author of Climbing Back, as well as the writer and director of the four adventure films Wheels of Fire, No Barriers, Beyond the Barriers and Crank it Up! The White Rim Adventure, Wellman understands the influence the media has on public perception. He believes in spreading messages of possibility through his work.

“Of all the films I’ve done, one of my favorite segments is from the movie Beyond the Barriers and it involves a complete quadriplegic named Larry Bowden. Larry uses a sip, puff and bite control to operate the sheets, sails and tiller of a sailboat. He told me that when he sails, he can be a ‘doer’ instead of a ‘viewer.’

You know, supercrips can pretty much do whatever they want these days, but it’s an incredibly powerful image to see Larry leave his power chair behind and float across the water.”


Leaving His Wheelchair Behind
Wellman is also experienced with leaving his wheelchair behind.

“I started with rock climbing after developing a system where you put an ascender on a pull-up bar, add a second ascender to a chest harness and climb a rope by doing a series of pull-ups," he says.

His legendary 1989 ascent of Yosemite’s El Capitan was covered nationally by Tom Brokaw and even earned him an invitation to the White House. Reflecting on the busy period immediately after the climb he says, “The next thing you knew, we were in the Oval Office talking about bone fishing with President Bush. That climb really changed my life forever.”

In the years since his ascent of El Capitan, Wellman has impacted the lives of literally thousands of similarly disabled individuals. His book and movies are fixtures in rehabilitation hospitals across the country and his climbing clinics and adventure camps are oversubscribed. It’s safe to say that if there is a pioneering breakthrough in the outdoor adventure sports, Mark Wellman has something to do with it.


“My message is really a simple one," Wellman says. "You don’t have to climb El Capitan or adaptive ski across the Sierras to break through your barriers. Find a passion that you love and figure out a way to do it,” he concludes.

[brotherjim]

This is just an excerpt from a New York Times article. You can read the rest if you wish on their site.

By DANNY HAKIM
Published: June 5, 2011
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Related
City Room: Answers About Abuse in State-Run Homes (June 9, 2011) Readers' Comments

New York State and the federal government provided $1.4 million annually per person to care for Jonathan and the other residents of the Oswald D. Heck Developmental Center, a warren of low-rise concrete and brick buildings near Albany.

Yet on a February afternoon in 2007, Jonathan, a skinny, autistic 13-year-old, was asphyxiated, slowly crushed to death in the back seat of a van by a state employee who had worked nearly 200 hours without a day off over 15 days. The employee, a ninth-grade dropout with a criminal conviction for selling marijuana, had been on duty during at least one previous episode of alleged abuse involving Jonathan.

“I could be a good king or a bad king,” he told the dying boy beneath him, according to court documents.

In the front seat of the van, the driver, another state worker at O. D. Heck, watched through the rear-view mirror but said little. He had been fired from four different private providers of services to the developmentally disabled before the state hired him to care for the same vulnerable population.

O. D. Heck is one of nine large institutions in New York that house the developmentally disabled, those with cerebral palsy, autism, Down syndrome and other conditions.

These institutions spend two and a half times as much money, per resident, as the thousands of smaller group homes that care for far more of the 135,000 developmentally disabled New Yorkers receiving services.

But the institutions are hardly a model: Those who run them have tolerated physical and psychological abuse, knowingly hired unqualified workers, ignored complaints by whistle-blowers and failed to credibly investigate cases of abuse and neglect, according to a review by The New York Times of thousands of state records and court documents, along with interviews of current and former employees.

Since 2005, seven of the institutions have failed inspections by the State Health Department, which oversees the safety and living conditions of the residents. One was shut down altogether this year.

While Jonathan Carey was at O. D. Heck, Health Department inspectors accused its management of routinely failing to investigate fractures and lacerations suffered by residents.

Similar problems can be found across the state. The Broome Developmental Center in Binghamton has been cited for repeatedly failing to protect residents from staff members. One employee there was merely reassigned after encouraging adolescent residents to fight one another.

Patterns of abuse appear embedded in the culture of the Sunmount Developmental Center in the Adirondacks. Last year, one supervisor was accused of four different episodes of physical and psychological abuse of residents within a span of two and a half months; another employee bragged on Facebook about “beating retards.”

The most damning accounts about the operations come from employees — thwarted whistle-blowers from around the state — and the beleaguered family members of residents.

[brotherjim]

I wanted to welcome Corey and Lily to the team . It is wonderful to have you with us.
Congratulations to Andrew for passing 100K and congrats to everyone on a super duper start to the season. May each of you continue to succeed in all you do in life.

[brotherjim]

I saw a beautiful sight as I was biking this morning. As I passed a hayfield newly mown, there was a red tailed hawk circling, looking for mice and snakes. I kept seeing his shadow as he would pass in front of the sun. When I was near the hay barn, he passed again and his shadow covered the entire roof of the barn( about 20 feet?) It was amazing, beautiful, beyond words really.

[ronnie1]

I like the hawk story, cool. I see many dolphins when I am on the water, shark shadows too. Glad I have my boat between shark and me.
Welcome from me also Corey and Lily

[brotherjim]

Chinese basketball icon, Houston Rockets player, and Special Olympics Global Ambassador Yao Ming participated in a sports skills clinic in China this past weekend. He worked on game fundamentals with twenty children with disabilities from a local special education school. And despite still recovering from an injured ankle he demonstrated a layup to these fans!

Unified Sports is an exciting part of Special Olympics that brings together athletes with and without intellectual disabilities on the same court, field, pitch, pool, rink, etc. Through Unified Sports, Special Olympics athletes and partners work together to sharpen their skills and further support the mission of inclusion and acceptance for people with intellectual disabilities. Unity Sports is a one time event that is an exhibition of the Unified Sports initiative and will be a new element of the World Games this year. Professional and Olympic athletes and celebrities partners will be in Athens to participate and play alongside Special Olympics in Unity Sports events throughout the World Games.

Yao Ming will be traveling to Athens along with Dikembe Mutombo, Sam Perkins and Vlade Divac to participate in a Unity Sports basketball game. Stay tuned on twitter and our blog for updates of the Unity Sports events to learn more about the exciting guests who will be participating!

By the way, did you know Yao Ming is the tallest player in the NBA at a whopping 7’6?!

[brotherjim]

June 18, 2011

MIRAMAR, Fla. – Day two of the 2011 U.S. Paralympics Track & Field National Championships was marked predominantly by battles in the 100 and 400m races. As expected, there were some tight finishes, as well as some standout performances. But the real recurring theme of today’s competition was the great potential that lies ahead for the U.S. team.

“We’ve got some kids that made the finals in the 100m that surprised me,” said Cathy Sellers (Colorado Springs, Colo.), head coach and director of U.S. Paralympics Track & Field High Performance. “I knew they were talented but they really came through and competed well in a high pressure situation, along with some phenomenal performances with the wheelchair athletes. I’m really excited about the depth of the talent that we’ve seen and what it means for the future of Team USA.”

Katie Maneen (Frankfort, N.Y.), who just started racing in November, made her Paralympic debut in Miramar.

“I was very nervous at first, but then I just got really excited to run against other amputees - just like me,” said Maneen. “I’ve been competing in able-bodied meets up until now. Being here and experiencing this, lets me know that making a future Paralympic team is within reach. I know I can get better.”

Maneen finished third in the women’s T44 100m final with a time of 15.68. Not bad for a newcomer, especially considering her competition: U.S. Paralympian and 100m world record holder April Holmes (Chula Vista, Calif.). Holmes took first place honors in 13.27. She was followed in second by Maya Nakanishi from Japan who finished in 14.43.

Bree McMahon (Orlando, Fla.) was another athlete at the 2011 U.S. Paralympics Track & Field Nationals. Only she didn’t competing in track. Or field events. McMahon was here to watch and learn.

She was injured in September 2009 after a being accidentally struck by a car during a high school car wash fundraiser. McMahon was pinned against a wall by the car and sustained multiple injuries that resulted in her losing her left leg above the knee. She’s had surgery after surgery since then, including one just last month.

“My favorite thing about being here is seeing the possibilities,” said McMahon. “This gets me really excited to see what I’m able to do.”

A soccer player since grade school, McMahon hopes to one day return to the sport. She’s heading into her sophomore year at Brevard College in North Carolina, where she was on the soccer roster, but hasn’t been able to play - yet. Right now she’s still working on physical therapy and getting stronger each day. She’s not exactly sure of her next steps, but knows that sports are definitely part of her plan.

Decorated U.S. Paralympian Jessie Galli (Savoy, Ill.) is excited about all of the new, young blood.

“I really like that we have younger kids coming up,” said Galli. “Our generation isn’t going to be around forever, so it’s nice to see the talent out there and ensure we’re building a strong team for the future.”

Galli had a strong showing in the women’s wheelchair sprints. In the women’s T53 100m, she took first place in 17.24. Univ. of Illinois teammate and U.S. Paralympian Anjali Forber-Pratt (Champaign, Ill.) was right behind her in 17.51. Two-time U.S. Paralympian Shirley Reilly (Tucson, Ariz.) came in third in 18.03.

In the women’s field competition, U.S. Paralympian Robyn Stawski (Tampa, Fla.) had a stellar performance in the women’s F53 shot put, setting a new American record with a throw of 5.75m.

Blake Leeper (Chula Vista, Calif.) won the men’s T43/44 100m in 11.43. He was followed closely by David Prince (Brandon, Fla.) who finished second in 11.79. Jarryd Wallace (Athens, Ga.), also considered to be among the new talent, finished in third in 11.90. Richard Browne (Jackson, Ms.), also a newcomer to Paralympic competition, came in fourth with a final time of 12.14. He was followed by Sergeant Rob Brown (Chula Vista, Calif., who was recently selected for the Paralympic Track & Field Resident Program and is living and training at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, Calif., in fifth place in 12.27.

Today was also a big day for Carlos Leon (Boynton Beach, Fla.). Six years ago on this day, marks the anniversary of his injury. While in Oahu, Hawaii, Leon was swimming and dove down into the water and struck his head on a rock. He broke his neck and became a quadriplegic. To Leon, the anniversary is reason to celebrate.

“I feel like I’ve come full circle,” said Leon. “It doesn’t make me sad to look back, those were good times and I have great memories of being a Marine. If it wasn’t for that day six years ago, I wouldn’t be here.”

And Leon definitely made being here tonight count. He just missed throwing a personal best (22.5m) by two centimeters, taking third place in the men’s discus F51/52/53/54 with a total of 682.65 points.

Scott Winkler (Grovetown, Ga.) took first place in the event with 717.92 pts and a best throw of 28.46m. Scot Severn (Caro, Mich.) finished in second place with 686.28 points and a best throw measuring 22.35m.

Compete results from the 2011 U.S. Paralympics Track & Field National Championships can be found online at http://usparalympics.org/2011trackandfi ... ps/results . The competition continues through Sunday.

For all the latest Team USA news and updates, visit http://www.USParalympics.org.

[ronnie1]

Welcome to the team Sunny!!!!! You look very impressive on your skateboard I know you will enjoy rowing with us. I have several meets coming up, I am sure you have competitions too.
Ronnie

[brotherjim]

Stephen Welch Home: Southlake, Texas
Stephen Welch has been involved in competitive sports since age four and participated in his fourth Paralympic Games in Bejiing. Although Welch did not medal in Beijing, he has four career Paralympic medals, including one gold medal.

At the age of eight, Welch was diagnosed with Legg Calve Perthes, a degenerative bone condition. But nothing has seemed to stop Welch from being competitive in the sports world, as he has been on the international stage in both wheelchair tennis and wheelchair basketball.

Since 1992, his tennis accomplishments have included more than 100 major titles, including two number one world titles and three U.S. Open titles. He has been a part of five national championships in the National Wheelchair Basketball Association and has earned three MVP awards.

Welch has also found time in his busy schedule to teach others through motivational speaking engagements and sports clinics he conducts around the world. When not playing tennis, Welch enjoys playing basketball and the piano.

Major Achievements:

•2008: U.S. Paralympic Team member, Wheelchair Tennis - Paralympic Games, Beijing, China
•2004: Member of U.S. ParalympicWheelchair Tennis team - Paralympic Games, Athens, Greece
•2000: Silver medal, singles; bronze medal, doubles - Paralympic Games, Sydney, Australia
•1996: Gold medal, doubles; silver medal, doubles - Paralympic Games, Atlanta, Ga.
•1999: First place - U.S. Open
•1994: First place - U.S. Open
•1992: First place - U.S. Open

[brotherjim]

Aimi Obara (Tennis)
Caregiver at nursing-care facility for elderly

19 year old Aimi is from Miyagi prefecture, where the quake hit severely on March 11. When the quake happened, Aimi was away with her twin sister. She returned to find her home destroyed, and her family moved into an apartment.

Most of her community have lost family members and homes, and still live in escape facilities without jobs. After discussing with her family and coach, Aimi decided to continue on in the World Games and concentrate fully on her training. The tennis courts she used to practice on have been damaged. Her coaches, who also have been affected by the quake, still devote time to Aimi, training a few times weekly after work.

Aimi and her mother feel blessed by the support, and have faith Aimi will do well in the Games.

Megumi Murayama (Bowling)
Caretaker at preschool

29 year old Megumi has not been affected by the quake, however she remains committed to her training as this is the first time she will participate, after being involved with Special Olympics Nippon for 9 years.

At the last World Games in Shanghai, Megumi was on the reserve bowling team. She is thrilled to make the main squad for Athens in June, and is looking forward to the experience, even though she admits she will miss her family.

Megumi’s training includes practice a few times weekly, with additional walks to build body strength. She works as a caretaker for a preschool taking care of children, and has enormous affection for her charges.

Naoya Tanahashi (Athletics)
Restaurant helper

19 year old Naoya’s training has been disrupted, first by the winter, and then the earthquake. His house survived the quake, but the restaurant he works for suffered serious damage. To serve his neighborhood, Naoya with his restaurant crew opened within days after the earthquake. Some workers left to help their own families, leaving the restaurant shorthanded as well.

With Naoya working full time, the only training he has is a daily 40 minute bicycle ride to the restaurant.

By the time he resumed training in April at Special Olympics Nippon’s training camp in Tokyo, he found it difficult to adjust, as he had not trained for 6 months. He felt frustrated not to be at his peak level, as he was at the SO Nippon National Games in 2010.

Despite this setback, Naoya remains hopeful and optimistic about the Games: “I don’t want to lose this great opportunity. I will do my best at the World Games. Before it, I will practice as much as I can.”

[brotherjim]

I don't feel age is a disability but to compete with athletes half your age in 2011 is incredible. I hope she is PED free.

BOULOGNE-SUR-MER, France (AP)—Jeannie Longo-Ciprelli won the French time trial for the fourth straight year at the age of 52 on Thursday, notching her 58th national title in road and track events.

The former Olympic and world champion finished the 19-kilometer (11.8-mile) course in 29 minutes, 45 seconds. She finished 42 seconds ahead of Christel Ferrier Bruneau and 52 in front of Audrey Cordon.

Longo-Ciprelli said earlier this year she was struggling to find the motivation to keep cycling and hinted at retirement.

Having first competed at the Olympics in 1984 in Los Angeles, Longo-Ciprelli won the road race gold medal at the 1996 Atlanta Games. She also has nine road world championship golds and four titles at the world track championships.

[brotherjim]

June 24, 2011
To Cut Stroke Risk, Exercise Must Be Strenuous
Yes Virginia, exercise does reduce the likelihood of stroke, but some exercise (the strenuous kind) does a much better job of it that other exercise (the leisurely kind). The Tufts Health & Nutrition Newsletter reports on a study of 1,238 participants in the Northern Manhattan Study Cohort, average age 70, who had not been diagnosed with ischemic stroke. Subjects were given MRI scans and questioned about their leisure-time physical activity. The researchers found that the most active one-quarter of a study group, those who did moderate to heavy exercise - were 40 percent less likely to suffer small brain infarcts than those in the bottom half of leisure-time physical activity. Those who exercised only lightly, however, had the same risk of small strokes as the sedentary half.