Sunday July 24 - Paratriathalon World Championships in Rotterdam, the Netherlands

BY USA TRIATHLON | JULY 20, 2016, 4:16 P.M. (ET) 

"COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Six members of the 2016 U.S. Paralympic Triathlon Team highlight a team of 14 Americans vying for world titles this Sunday at the 2016 ITU Paratriathlon World Championships in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

The American contingent of 14 is the largest at this year’s Paratriathlon Worlds, ahead of Great Britain’s 13 athletes. A total of 100 athletes will compete across all five sport classes, completing a 750-meter swim, 20-kilometer bike, 5-kilometer run course. Complete details about the ITU Paratriathlon World Championships are available at rotterdam.triathlon.org. 

The U.S. roster for this Sunday is:

• Krige Schabort (Rome, Ga.), PT1/wheelchair*
• Geoffrey Kennedy (Rio Grande, Puerto Rico), PT1/wheelchair
• Kendall Gretsch (Madison, Wis.), PT1/wheelchair
• Mary Kate Callahan (La Grange, Ill.), PT1/wheelchair
• Mark Barr (Houston, Texas), PT2/severe impairment*
• Hailey Danisewicz (Chicago, Ill.), PT2/severe impairment*
• Allysa Seely (Glendale, Ariz.), PT2/severe impairment*
• Andre Cilliers (Washington, D.C.), PT3/moderate impairment
• Chris Hammer (Salt Lake City, Utah), PT4/mild impairment*
• Jamie Brown (Carlsbad, Calif.), PT4/mild impairment
• Grace Norman (Jamestown, Ohio), PT4/mild impairment*
• Ruth-Ann Reeves (Hattiesburg, Miss.), PT4/mild impairment
• Aaron Scheidies (Seattle, Wash.), PT5/visual impairment
• Amy Dixon (Greenwich, Conn.), PT5/visual impairment

* - denotes U.S. Paralympic Triathlon Team member

Schabort, Barr, Danisewicz, Seely, Hammer and Norman will race on Sept. 10 (men) and 11 (women) for the first ever Paralympic Games triathlon medals, as triathlon is set to make its Paralympic debut this year in Rio. Additionally, the Worlds team features a number of past world champions and medalists looking for more hardware on the international stage.  

More, https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Triathlon/News/Articles-and-Releases/2016/July/20/Paralympic-Games-Qualifiers-Headline-US-Team-for-Paratriathlon-World-Championships

Hershey’s updates label in support of Team USA

Iconic Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Bar Changes Famous Silver Lettering for First Time to Support Team USA

"In support of Team USA, the 122-year old Hershey's Milk Chocolate Bar will be taking an unprecedented shift and switching the traditional silver lettering to red, white and blue for the first time in the history of the bar. The Team USA line of products was revealed on Wednesday, April 27th..."

For athlete and product profiles, visit hersheysteamusa.com

"Hershey’s is also proud to announce partnerships with 2012 U.S. wrestling gold-medalist Jordan Burroughs, 2012 U.S. Paralympic swimming gold-medalist Mallory Weggemann and U.S. Olympic swimming hopeful and Hershey, Pennsylvania, native David Nolan to its roster of athletes. Burroughs and Weggemann will be featured in Hershey’s chocolate new campaign as they prepare for their trips to the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Rio and Nolan will have the support from his hometown company in pursuit of making his first U.S. Olympic Team."

Paralympic Headlines

Rio 2016: Paralympic rowers Kathryn Ross and Gavin Bellis determined to win

07.19.16

To train on Canberra's Lake Burley Griffin six mornings a week in mid-winter requires some serious motivation.  

But Kathryn Ross and Gavin Bellis are extremely determined. 

In just over a month the two will represent Australia in the Paralympics together, rowing in the mixed double sculls event. 

They have been training for this for four years. 

He

's definitely the engine," Ms Ross said. 

"He's the engine in the boat and I hope to hold up a good rhythm and pace so that he can follow and put all the power in that he's got."

The pair came fifth in the London Paralympics but have since gone from strength to strength. They are now triple world champions and favourites for gold in Rio. More, http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-07-19/paralympic-rowers-determined-to-win/7642080

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The IPC Shooting World Cup has taken place in Osijek, Croatia, from 10-14 July, with nearly 230 athletes from 48 nations prepare to line up for the first Rio 2016 Paralympic Games qualifier of 2015. All results can be found via the IPC Shooting website: http://www.paralympic.org/shooting/live-results.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sport Week: Rio 2016 Paralympic shooting venue

07.09.2016

 The Olympic Shooting Centre will host 12 medal events between 8-14 September.

From 8-14 September shooters from around the world will compete in 12 men’s, women’s and mixed events at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games.

Every single day will feature medal events, allowing fans lots of chances to see athletes win medals for their country.

Shooters will line-up at the same venue as their able-bodied counterparts – the Olympic Shooting Centre in the Deodoro Olympic Park. More, https://www.paralympic.org/news/sport-week-rio-2016-paralympic-shooting-venue

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Long headlines USA’s Rio 2016 swim team

07.04.2016

Rudy Garcia-Tolson and Cody Bureau will also enter their fourth Paralympic Games in September, as 31 athletes in total complete the roster.  US Paralympics, a division of the United States Olympic Committee, announced its 31-strong Rio 2016 Paralympics Games swimmingteam on Sunday (3 July) after three days of intense racing at the Paralympic trials in North Carolina.

Seventeen athletes heading to Rio 2016 have Paralympic Gamesexperience, whilst 14 fresh faces are looking to turn heads in the sport’s ultimate competition. The team will also feature two US military service members, one a retired Navy veteran and one active duty member currently serving in the United States Army.

Twelve-time Paralympic gold medallist Jessica Long, Rudy Garcia-Tolson and Cody Bureau are the only swimmers on the team able to say their Paralympic Games career stretches back to the Athens 2004 Paralympic Games. All three have been named to their fourth team with the trio all having competed in 2012, 2008 and 2004. More, https://www.paralympic.org/news/long-headlines-usa-s-rio-2016-swim-team

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

USEF Names U.S. Paralympic Equestrian Team for the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games

06.16.2016

Lexington, Ky. – June 16, 2016 – The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) has announced a team of four athlete-horse combinations for the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Para-dressage competition will take place September 12–16 at the Deodoro Olympic Equestrian Center, which is also hosting the Olympic equestrian events several weeks earlier.

The para-dressage team was chosen following the USEF Para-Equestrian Dressage National Championships, which served as the selection trial. Each combination’s two highest scores in CPEDI3* events taking place between Jan. 1, 2015, and May 16, 2016, also influenced the team selection. More, https://www.uset.org/3194-2/

NBCSN to air Road to Rio tonight

Tonight, NBCSN will air Road to Rio: 2016 U.S. Paralympic Team Trials, a one-hour special that chronicles the making of the 2016 U.S. Paralympic Track & Field, Swimming, and Cycling Teams. 1100 pm Eastern. Check local listings.

Olympic Games Promote Peaceful Relations Among People of the World

 

Support#OlympicPeace

When faced with turmoil and conflict across the Globe, the Olympic Movement reminds us of our shared humanity. Despite differences in geography, appearance, culture and norms, we have much in common.

Support#Olympic Peace - The Olympic Movement is releasing special "messengers," doves to spread peace in hopes of resolving conflict. The dove is a universal symbol of peace and set against an Olympic color, we consider the 2016 Summer Games as a time to celebrate freedom and spirit of friendly competition.







Choose your dove and special message to share with the World via Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.  A few sample messages, "Peace does not keep score,"  "Together we are one," and "Peace always finishes first."

Further, read special peace stories of outstanding athletes, who overcame great odds to succeed and become images of hope. One inspirational story is that of Derartu Tulu and Elana Meyer,

"At the Olympic Games Barcelona 1992, two women gave the world an undying symbol of unity, peace and hope. Elana Meyer was the first South African to win an individual medal in her nation’s return to the Olympic family after being excluded since 1960 over its apartheid system. In the same race, Ethiopia’s Derartu Tulu won her country its first ever gold medal. Meyer ran up to Tulu and planted a kiss on each of her cheeks. The two women took a victory lap hand in hand. It was a sight almost impossible to imagine at the time. The Olympic Games helped welcome South Africa back into the Olympic family and the athletes provided a symbol of unity for the whole of Africa in a moment that will live on forever."




19 Days to the Opening Ceremony in Rio!

United Nations Office on Sport for Development and Peace

En route to Brazil during the spring, the Olympic torch for the 2016 Summer Games stopped in Geneva.  The spirit of the Summer Games was touted at the United Nations Office during a special "Celebrating the Olympic Spirit" Program. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) awarded the Olympic Cup to the U.N., recognizing its continuing efforts to promote peace and sustainable development through friendly sport.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon commented, "I sincerely thank you for this powerful recognition of the talented, dedicated and selfless women and men of our Organization...I thank all the United Nations bodies that are leveraging the power of sport. We are collaborating with athletes to inspire children. We are making the Games more green. We are joining forces to use this massive, global celebration of the human spirit as a reminder of our common humanity." (Source: https://www.un.org/sport/)

[Photo: www.un.org/sport/]

Within the U.N., its Office on Sport for Development and Peace (UNOSDP) promotes exchange of ideas, information and new partnerships to enhance education, health, development and peace. Youth may participate in Leadership Camps, learning to work on social and development projects benefiting their communities.

UNOSDP partnership examples include 1) strengthening access for girls to sport and promoting women's rights through the Tajikistan National Taekwondo Federation supported by U.N. Women, and 2) increasing disability sport and physical activity in Haiti through a partnership with BlazeSports, a non-governmental organization.  Other organizations working with the UNOSDP include International Paralympic Committee, International Judo Federation,  Gwangju Universiade 2015 Organizing Committee, International Volleyball Federation, Union of European Football Associations, SportAccord, Peace and Sport and Korean Air.

We look forward to recognition of sport and development projects by the UNOSDP during the Rio2016 Summer Games! 

Advances in prosthetic technology increase opportunities for sport

Today, athletes with physical disabilities compete in many sports, from track and field, to basketball, hockey, swimming and more. The International Paralympic Committee classifies para-athletes in categories for competition based on their impairment.  One eligible impairment type is limb deficiency due to total or partial absence of bones or joints as a consequence of trauma (e.g. car accident), illness (e.g. bone cancer) or congenital limb deficiency (e.g. dysmelia). (Source: https://www.paralympic.org/classification)

Prosthetics and orthotics are special equipment used by some para-athletes to successfully contend. 
"The technology in the last five years is leaps and bounds ahead of where it was the previous 15 years," says John Spillar, market manager for sports prosthetics in North America for Ottobock. "We're making more and more custom devices for people who want to climb mountains, for people who want to play specific sports. You'll never be able to replace the limb, but we can get things like ground reaction force, the spring in the feet, things like that, and now we have athletes who are using these devices to beat world records." (Source: espn.go.com)

(Photo: helix.northwestern.edu)

Dr. Todd Kuiken pioneered targeted muscle reinnervation (TMR) at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. Amputated nerves are redirected from the endpoint of injury to another muscle group. Electrodes receive the nerve impulse from the central nervous system and signal movement of the prosthetic limb. With training, an individual learns to think about and control movement of the advanced prosthetic. (Source: How Stuff Works Science - How Prosthetic Limbs Work)

Emerging technologies show promise in customizing prosthetics to the user, learning patterns of muscle movement and load. The result is an adaptive device that increases efficiency and precision of motion. The increasing number of injured veterans is driving advances in bioengineering, restoring mobility and independence. The future promises "smart" prosthetics with a computer interface enabling quick adjustments to demand without loss of function.