DeafDigest Mid-Week edition, September 9, 2013
-- a champion deaf swimmer not allowed to become a lifeguard
James Webster, a deaf British swimmer, has competed in the
Deaflympics and is trying out for the hearing British swimming
team that will compete at the Commonwealth Games. Needing a full
time job, he wanted to enroll in a lifeguard training program,
hoping to get a job as a lifeguard. The school told him he
was not allowed to become a lifeguard because of his deafness.
It didn't matter that he swims much faster than hearing lifeguards!
He is very angry about it and the British newspaper wrote up a
big story about it.
-- a deaf winner of a hearing Beauty Pageant
When we talk about Beauty Pageants, we immediately think of
Heather Whitestone, a deaf woman who was the 1995 Miss America
Pageant winner. We do have several other deaf winners of hearing
beauty pageants. And we do have the latest winner - Chui Yee Shia,
a deaf woman who won the 2013 Miss Singapore Beauty Pageant. She
plans to compete in other Pageants.
-- our angry deaf sports leaders
much embarrassed by the Americans' poor showing at the
recent Deaflympics, there is much talk of overhauling the
USA Deaf Sports Federation (USADSF). Some want the basketball
group to secede from the USADSF; some want the USADSF
management replaced with new blood. Some also want the
swimming group to secede. It will be interesting to see what
happens in the next few months - because it all boils down to
one thing - fund raising; if our best athletes cannot raise
funds, they stay home. When they stay home, we lose on medals.
And who is laughing very hard? The Paralympics group; they
control the money and wanted deaf to join them and we have
refused.
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09/08/13 Blue edition at:
http://35.182.75.222/category/newsletter/newsletter-blue-newsletter/
09/08/13 Gold edition at:
http://35.182.75.222/category/newsletter/newsletter-gold-newsletter/
