Parapan American Games – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil USA DAILY – August 13, 2007 In this Issue • Athletes share their thoughts on Opening Ceremonies • Schedule of events for U.S. athletes on Day One of the Parapan American Games • Team previews for the U.S. Parapan American Powerlifting, Sitting Volleyball and Track & Field Teams (Full previews can be found at www.usparalympics.org and www.usocpressbox.org.) Upcoming Events Aug. 13: Competition begins!!! Aug. 13: TABLE TENNIS – Open class preliminaries, 9:00 a.m. – Riocentro Aug. 13: POWERLIFTING – Men’s 56 kg – Rohan Murphy (University Park, Pa.), 10:00 a.m. – Riocentro Aug. 13: SOCCER – USA v. Brazil, 10:00 a.m. – Deodoro Sports Complex Aug. 13: SWIMMING preliminaries, 10:00 a.m. – Aquatic Center Maria Lenk (Men’s 100 Freestyle S8 - Tom Miazga (Milwaukee, Wis./Cedarburg, Wis.); Women’s 100 Freestyle S7- 8 Sarah Hunt (Fort Collins, Colo.) and Amanda Everlove (Valencia, Calif./Wichita, Kan.); Women’s 100 Freestyle S11 Megan Smith (Sierra Nevada, Calif./Eugene, Ore.); Women’s 100 Butterfly S10 Susan Beth Scott (Cape Girardeau, Mo.); Women’s 100 Backstroke S6 - Miranda Uhl (Gainesville, Fla./Alachua, Fla.) and Casey Johnson (Fountain Valley, Calif./Cypress, Calif.) and S7-S8 - Sarah Hunt and Amanda Everlove; Men’s 100 Backstroke S7 Alex Dionne (Panama City, Panama/Mequon, Wis.); Men’s 100 Backstroke S8 Tom Miazga; Women’s 50 Freestyle S3 Beth Kolbe (Tiffin, Ohio)) Aug. 13: WHEELCHAIR BASKETBALL – U.S. men v. Puerto Rico, 10:00 a.m. – Rio Multipurpose Arena Aug. 13: TRACK & FIELD finals and semifinals, 2:00 p.m. - João Havelange Olympic Stadium Aug. 13: TABLE TENNIS – Women’s Class 1-5 preliminaries and quarterfinals, Men’s Class 1-5 preliminaries and Men’s Class 6-10 preliminaries and quarterfinals, 3:00 p.m. - Riocentro Aug. 13: POWERLIFTING – Men’s 67.5 kg – Andy Wise (Needham, Mass.), 4:00 p.m. – Riocentro Aug. 13: SWIMMING finals, 5:00 p.m. - Aquatic Center Maria Lenk Aug. 13: WHEELCHAIR BASKETBALL – U.S. women v. El Salvador, 6:00 p.m. – Rio Multipurpose Arena U.S. Athletes March in Opening Ceremonies The Opening Ceremonies for the 2007 Parapan American Games took place Sunday afternoon at the Rio Multipurpose Arena. Athletes from the 25 competing nations were treated to a colorful and lively ceremony that highlighted the festive nature of the Brazilian culture. The athletes were treated to several acrobatic and dance performances that lived up to the Parpan Ams motto “Viva essa Energia!” or “Share the Energy!” Carlos Arthur Nuzman, President of the XV Pan American Games Rio 2007 Organizing Committee, and Andrew Parsons, President of the Americas Paralympic Committee, addressed the crowd and the ceremony concluded with the lighting of the Parapan American Cauldron. The flame was lit inside the arena and will be transferred to the Athlete’s Village, where it will remain until the conclusion of the Games. Track & Field team member Robyn Stawski (Tampa, Fla.) shared her thoughts on the ceremony: “The Opening Ceremony really lit a fire in me,” said Stawksi. “There was so much energy and enthusiasm. I really walked away feeling inspired, empowered and ready to do my best. It’s truly an honor and privilege to see all these countries together and, at the same time, represent my own.” Powerlifters Hope to Lift Their Dreams for Beijing with Strong Performance in Rio Two-time Paralympian Mary Stack (Ann Arbor, Mich.) leads the four-athlete U.S. Parapan American Powerlifting Team, which is the same group that represented the U.S. at the 2006 International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Powerlifting World Championships in Busan, Korea. The first half of the 2007 United States Parapan American Games Powerlifting Team will take the platform tomorrow. Rohan Murphy (University Park, Pa.) will get things started for Team USA at 10:00 Rio time in Pavilion 3A at the Rio Centro Convention Center in the men’s 56kg weight class. Andy Wise (Needham, Mass.) will compete in the men’s 67.5kg weight class in the afternoon session, which begins at 16:00. Rohan Murphy will be The fourth member of the team is Kortney Clemons (University Park, Pa.), a member of the first U.S. lifter in the U.S. Olympic Committee’s Paralympic Military Program. Clemons came to the first Rio, competing at 56 Paralympic Military Sports Camp in 2005 and later became involved with powerlifting kg. and track and field. He finished 13th in the men’s 75 kg class in Busan. Men’s Sitting Volleyball Team prepares for final opportunity to qualify for the Paralympic Games The U.S. Men’s Sitting Volleyball team returns to the Parapan American Games to defend its gold medal from the 2003 Games in Mar del Plata, Argentina. It was there that the U.S. won a berth to the 2004 Paralympic Games and eventually finished sixth in the 2004 competition, the team’s highest finish ever in the Paralympic Games. The U.S. returns four veterans from the 2004 team: team captain Brent Rasmussen (Omaha, Neb.), Eric Duda (Edmond, Okla.), Curtis Lease (Naperville, Ill.) and Chris Seilkop (Deland, Fla.). A ninth-place finish at the 2006 Sitting Volleyball World Championships was not enough to advance the team to the 2008 Paralympic Games. Now, the Parapan Am Games are the final opportunity for the U.S. to qualify for the 2008 Paralympic Games. The U.S. must win the gold in order to head to Beijing next year. Brent Rasmussen will look to help lead the U.S. to a second straight Parapan Ams gold medal. Gold is everything The U.S. Parapan American Table Tennis Team is preparing to serve twisting backhands and forehands to opponents at the 2007 Parapan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Nine Americans will swing their paddles with calculated precision as they vie for victory against the steady hands of the opposition. Norman Bass (Inglewood, Calif.), Stuart Caplin (Orange Park, Fla.), Pam Fontaine (Double Oak, Texas), Tahl Leibovitz (Ozone Park, N.Y.), Edward Levy (Portland, Ore.), Wayne Lo (Sunnyvale, Calif.), Noga Nir-Kistler (Allentown, Pa.), Andre Scott (Fort Worth, Texas) and Mitchell Seidenfeld (Lakeville, Minn.) are ready to take on the Americas. Gold is the ultimate objective. The simplest route to the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games for table tennis players will be traveled only by those who win their classes in Rio. Tahl Leibovitz has won six gold medals at the “The easiest way to go to Beijing is to win a gold medal here,” U.S. Paralympics Table last two Parapan Tennis Head Coach Sean O’Neill (Portland, Ore.) said. American Games. U.S. Parapan Am Track & Field Team Ready to Race in Rio With the largest number of athletes of any U.S. team, the track & field roster weighs in 36- members long. And as U.S. Paralympic Track & Field Head Coach Troy Engle (Colorado Springs, Colo.) will tell you, there’s strength in those numbers. “This is a quality, high-level competition and everyone on our team has the potential to medal,” said Coach Engle. “All results from appearances here in Rio will appear on the world list, and I’m confident that our athletes will be extremely competitive and have the opportunity to achieve elite-level standards in their classification or event.” Of the 36 athletes, 10 competed at the 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens, Greece. Those athletes are Edwin Cockrell (New Athens, Ill.), Scott Danberg (Cooper City, Fla.), Ryan Fann (Brush Creek, Tenn.), Brian Frasure (Apex, N.C.), Elexis Gillette (Greenville, N.C.), Peter Gottwald Jr. (West Chester, Pa.), April Holmes (Chula Vista., Calif./Somerdale, N.J.), Jill Kennedy (Palmyra, Va.), Royal Mitchell (Chula Vista, Calif.) and Marlon Shirley (Chula Vista, Calif./Tremonton, Utah). Coach Engle is joined by a cast of supporting coaches, including Ambulatory Head Coach Joaquim Cruz (San Diego, Calif.), a three-time Brazilian Olympian, who leads the U.S. Paralympic Ambulatory Resident Track & Field Program at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, Calif; Throws Head Coach Carla Garrett (Tucson, Ariz.); and Wheelchair Track Head Coach Kevin Orr (Birmingham, Ala.). U.S. Paralympian and world record holder (women’s T44 100, 200, 400m) April Holmes and U.S. Paralympian (2000) Troy Davis (Queen Creek, Ariz.) were chosen by fellow teammates to serve as co-captains of the team at the competition. Troy Davis and April Holmes were named “It’s an honor for me to serve as co-captain,” said Holmes. “It seems like not long ago that I the men’s and women’s lost my leg, I can hardly believe how fast time has passed. To know that other members of captains, respectively, this team voted for me to represent us and serve as a leader – and to hopefully provide some for the U.S. Parapan laughs, really means the world to me.” American Track and Field Team. “I was honored to be recognized by my teammates, whom I highly regard and respect,” said Davis. “For them to think of me as one of their leaders is a high honor for me.” .