Michael Prout and Deborah Gruen
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Gruen and Prout named to U.S. Paralympic Team
Update!
Read about Deb and Mike's individual performances.
Thanks to Jon Levine, Jeff Gruen and Rick Lucan for the updates.
Michael Prout and Deborah Gruen
Based on their performance this past weekend at the U.S. Paralympic Trials/USA National Disability meet, the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) and the U.S. Paralympics have named Deborah Gruen (HNHS) and Michael Prout (BEAR) to the U.S. Paralympic Team. Both will be competing in the Paralympics to be held this September in Athens, Greece. This competition is held once every 4 years following the Olympics. Huge congratulations to Deb and Mike for this outstanding achievement!!
From the U.S Paralympic website:
WHAT ARE THE
PARALYMPIC GAMES?
The Paralympic Games
are the second largest sporting event in the world, conceding top honors only to
the Olympics. The multi-sport competition showcases the talents and abilities of
the world's most elite athletes with physical disabilities. The Paralympics
feature 21 sports, 18 of which are also contested in the Olympics.
The first Paralympics were held in 1960 in Rome, Italy. Only 400 athletes from 23 countries participated. It wasn't until the 1988 Paralympics in Seoul, Korea, that the modern-day practice of the Olympic-host nation also hosted the Paralympic Games. Today more than 4,000 athletes from 120 countries participate in the Summer Paralympics, while more than 1,100 athletes from 36 countries compete in the Winter Paralympic Games.
Joining Deb and Mike at the Paralympic Trials were three other
Connecticut athletes: Mary-Christine Beck (CDEV),
Jaclyn Lanzetti (BRS) and Lauren Roseman (SNCO). All athletes recording
life-time best swims. Congratulations!
Deb Gruen achieved 6 best times: 50M fly, 400M free, 200M free,
100M breast, 1500M free including her 800M split. She picked up 4 gold
(200M free, 400M free, 100M breast, and 1500M free), 2 silver (50M fly and 100M
free), and 1 bronze (50M free). She was awarded the Conoco-Phillips 66
Performance of the Meet Award (Deb shared it last year with Kelley Crowley,
but this year was the single only recipient - men's or women's) for her 1500M
freestyle where she set a new American Record, Pan-American record, and World
Record, and in the same swim, set a new American Record for the 800M freestyle.
-Submitted by CSI Staff Reporters
Jeff Gruen and Rick Lucan
Mike Prout swam many personal bests, winning the 100M fly
(106.92), just missing Dana Albrycht's (OAK) American Record, 100M free (59.46),
and 400M free (432.68). Mike took 2nd place in the 50M free (28.19) and 100M
back (108.85). His times in the 100M free and the 200M IM (227.47 from trials)
are now listed as American records. (He actually went 2 seconds faster at night
in the IM, but he and just about everyone who swam in the meet that night were
DQ'ed!) He was the first American S9 to break a minute in the 100 free.
-Submitted by CSI Staff Reporter
Jon Levine
More Olympic Trials news will follow as Daniel Madwed (SHKS), Ben Michaelson (SNCO), Geoff Rathgeber (SNCO) and Tammy Repass (SNCO) compete in the Olympic Trials this July in Long Beach, CA.