At the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials, a Deaf Sprinter Relied on Signals
Hall beats Norman in wild day at U.S. Track & Field Trials.
Michael Norman, the 2022 World Champion, had the fastest time among Americans coming into the men’s 400 m final at 44.21 in early May. … But 2023 Worlds bronze winner Quincy Hall had the fastest time in the semis at 44.42 and passed Norman in the final 50 and ran away to a massive lifetime best of 44.17 (old was 44.37) … Norman made the team in second at 44.41, but barely ahead of the fast-closing Chris Bailey (44.42), with Vernon Norwood fourth in 44.47.
This paragraph was written by The Sports Examiner Editor Rick Perelman this early morning. He named four runners out of 35 entries in the 400M Men’s event. He knows about a deaf sprinter named Eric Gregory of Gallaudet University who participated in that event. I guess Perelman could thank Associated Press Reporter Pat Graham for writing a fine article about Runner Gregory.
Read “At Olympic trials, deaf runner Eric Gregory will rely on signals, coach’s prompts to shine in 400" and look at six pictures.
Last month, Gregory’s third straight NCAA Division III men's outdoor 400-meter dash national championships landed him on the No. 35 out of 35 trial entries.
Rely on the Signals?
The AP article states:
When Eric Gregory crouches into the starting blocks, his coach will be right next to him.
It’s the best way for the 400-meter sprinter to ensure a fast start. Because Gregory can’t really hear the starter’s commands or sometimes the starter’s pistol.
So he waits for his coach, Byron Moore, to signal commands from a lane usually to his right, and a shout of “let's go!” after the pistol.
The system is working to perfection
Gregory’s trial result is in The Daily Moth’s news section, including a YouTube link (at 1:03 mark).
And “Eric Gregory makes Gallaudet history in U.S. Olympic Team Trials debut.”
Interesting: Gregory’s trial performance was overshadowed by Quincy Wilson, a high school phenom at the Bullis School of Potomac, MD, who set an Under-18 World Record and National High School record with a time of 44.66 seconds; their school institutions are 17 miles apart-!
Watch the RunnerSpace.com video of “Interview with Eric Gregory” (No closed captioned)
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Take at another different-!
Please click below to see what Coach Brooke Gallimore is tapping on Deaf Sprinter Madison Avery.
This Instagram video has been viewed more than 7 million times. I love reading a train-long list of comments from the viewers.
Then, click on “Sinton High School athlete with hearing loss sprints past challenges.”
And “Sinton girls track star chosen for World Deaf Championships.”
NOTE: After discussing the pros and cons, Amery decided not to participate in Taiwan next month.
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See the different one-!
An excerpt from the 1961 article in the Dayton Daily News reads:
One of the major adjustments for Howard was getting an all-important quick start for a track sprint event.
Since he could not hear the starter’s gun, he had to look up and watch for the smoke after the gun had been fired. Precious moments were lost with this awkward method.
Coach Ron Bradley tells how this problem was partially solved.
“We thought and thought how he could get a better start. At first we felt there was nothing we could do about it, but it gave him such a disadvantage.”
“Neal Farnlacher, offical starter at all track events at Welcome stadium [in Dayton, Ohio], decided to move down the track a little farther so he wouldn’t have to look up so much. It helped a great deal. It’s still hard for him to start quickly but not nearly so much.”
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Here is the official starter signal at the Deaflympics.
Click the USADTF video to explain how it works.