Deaf Is.. Sports
Terrence
lives in South Africa. He was born deaf and uses sign language to communicate
with his swimming coach. He started swimming at 12 years old. He holds
the African record for 200 and 400 meters individual medley. He believes
deaf people can succeed and win medals. He tries to improve himself by
joining competitions and he won a medal in the Olympics.
Terrence had a problem where he could not hear the tone for the swimming race to start. So his coach would stand where Terrence could see him and the coach would sign, “GO!” Today, there is new technology, which uses lights that flash when it is time for the swimmers to start swimming.
Terrence swam in
his first Olympics in Sydney, Australia. Terrence won second place for 200
meter breaststroke in the Olympics of 2000. When he touched the end of the
pool, he saw “2” on the scoreboard. He thought it was the lane
number, but later, he found out that he won 2nd place! That meant he won
a silver medal. He was so happy because he knew deaf people could do it!
“I think it will confirm that deaf people can do things,” Terrence
said in an interview.