{"id":16113,"date":"2011-10-05T02:00:20","date_gmt":"2011-10-05T07:00:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/?p=16113"},"modified":"2011-10-05T02:45:25","modified_gmt":"2011-10-05T07:45:25","slug":"deaf-swimmer-defies-odds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2011\/10\/05\/deaf-swimmer-defies-odds\/","title":{"rendered":"Deaf Swimmer Defies Odds"},"content":{"rendered":"

Deaf Swimmer Defies Odds<\/strong><\/p>\n

O’Connor HS Student Abby McAlpin Hopes To Inspire Others<\/p>\n

Eileen Gonzales, KSAT 12 News Reporter<\/p>\n

September 27, 2011<\/p>\n

SAN ANTONIO — Swimming is Abby McAlpin’s passion. “I love swimming. I love
\nmy teammates. I love my coaches. It’s just my life. I love it,” McAlpin
\nsaid.<\/p>\n

McAlpin, a junior at O’Connor High School, has been swimming competitively
\nsince she was 9-years-old and despite being born deaf, she’s been making big
\nwaves at competitions.<\/p>\n

“She’s very competitive. When its’ time to race, she gets up there and she
\nlets it go,” said Bill Thomas, Aquatics Coordinator and Head Coach at
\nNorthside Natatorium said.<\/p>\n

McAlpin reads lips, uses hearing aids when possible and her coaches make
\nsure to give her written instructions as well.<\/p>\n

She also has to pay close attention to the starting signals. “It’s hard, but
\nI don’t let it get to me. I don’t like let it put me down,” McAlpin said.
\n“If you have a disability, you shouldn’t let it hold you back.”<\/p>\n

Not only has Abby broken swim records at O’Connor High School, she recently
\nreceived several medals in the World Deaf Championships in Portugal.<\/p>\n

Abby said the experience changed her outlook on life. “At first I wasn’t
\nvery sure of myself and now I’m very sure that I’m proud to be deaf and it’s
\nwho I am today,” she said.<\/p>\n

In 2013, McAlpin will compete with the U.S. Team at the Deaflympics and she
\nhopes to inspire others as well.<\/p>\n

“I definitely want to help deaf children. I want them to know that if they
\nhave a dream, they can reach it,” Abby said.<\/p>\n

Source:<\/p>\n

http:\/\/www.ksat.com\/health\/29315937\/detail.html<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Deaf Swimmer Defies Odds O’Connor HS Student Abby McAlpin Hopes To Inspire Others Eileen Gonzales, KSAT 12 News Reporter September 27, 2011 SAN ANTONIO — Swimming is Abby McAlpin’s passion. “I love swimming. I love my teammates. I love my…<\/p>\n

Read more →<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2],"tags":[11130,11128,11129,24,277,153,11131,11127,22,5248,11132,11126],"class_list":["post-16113","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-deaf-news","tag-abby-mcalpin","tag-aquatics-coordinator","tag-bill-thomas","tag-deaf","tag-deaflympics","tag-hearing-aid","tag-oconnor-high-school","tag-portugal","tag-san-antonio","tag-swimming","tag-u-s-team","tag-world-deaf-championships"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p752R-4bT","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":21974,"url":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2013\/02\/22\/oconnor-senior-wont-let-being-deaf-slow-her-down\/","url_meta":{"origin":16113,"position":0},"title":"O’Connor senior won’t let being deaf slow her down","author":"Grant Laird Jr","date":"February 22, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"O'Connor senior won't let being deaf slow her down February 8, 2013 Abby McAlpin has a r\u00e9sum\u00e9 to make any high school swimmer proud. The O'Connor senior has competed at the UIL state meet. She has set school and district records. She has medaled in an international competition in Portugal.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/category\/deaf-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":28102,"url":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2014\/07\/27\/usa-deaf-swimming-selects-san-antonio-for-2015-world-championships\/","url_meta":{"origin":16113,"position":1},"title":"USA Deaf Swimming Selects San Antonio for 2015 World Championships","author":"Grant Laird Jr","date":"July 27, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"USA DEAF SWIMMING SELECTS SAN ANTONIO FOR 2015 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS July 3, 2014 SAN ANTONIO, Texas, July 3. The USA Deaf Swimming organization today announced that San Antonio Texas has been selected to host its top international meet - the 2015 World Deaf Swimming Championships slated for August 17-22, 2015.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/category\/deaf-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":28486,"url":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2014\/09\/04\/san-antonio-awarded-2015-world-deaf-swimming-champions\/","url_meta":{"origin":16113,"position":2},"title":"San Antonio Awarded 2015 World Deaf Swimming Champions","author":"Grant Laird Jr","date":"September 4, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"SAN ANTONIO AWARDED 2015 WORLD DEAF SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS The International Committee of Sports for the Deaf awarded San Antonio Texas the 2015 World Deaf Swimming Championships slated for August 17-22, 2015 at the Northside Independent School District's Northside Swim Center. The following is a press release courtesy of USA Deaf\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/category\/deaf-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"USADS-Logo-1-Low-Res","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/USADS-Logo-1-Low-Res-150x150.jpeg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":25244,"url":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2013\/11\/06\/this-deaf-athlete-says-losing-my-hearing-has-given-me-a-positive-outlook-on-life\/","url_meta":{"origin":16113,"position":3},"title":"This Deaf Athlete Says: ‘Losing My Hearing Has Given Me A Positive Outlook on Life’","author":"Grant Laird Jr","date":"November 6, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"This Deaf Athlete Says: 'Losing My Hearing Has Given Me A Positive Outlook on Life' Today we're featuring David Tolstyka, a member of the Fightin' Texas Aggie Class of 2017. He was a competitive swimmer for 10 years (ages 8-18) and during his time as a swimmer, he was able\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/category\/deaf-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":28945,"url":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2014\/10\/13\/leroy-colombo-champion-swimmer-and-record-breaking-lifeguard\/","url_meta":{"origin":16113,"position":4},"title":"LEROY COLOMBO: Champion Swimmer and Record-Breaking Lifeguard","author":"Grant Laird Jr","date":"October 13, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"LEROY COLOMBO: Champion Swimmer and Record-Breaking Lifeguard LeRoy Colombo (1905 \u2013 1974) was mentioned in the Guinness Book of World Records for having saved 907 confirmed lives during his 40-year career as a lifeguard, breaking all records at the time; some reports suggest that he saved more than a thousand\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/category\/deaf-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":39278,"url":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2019\/06\/20\/reminder-texas-deaf-festival-8-10-19-san-antonio\/","url_meta":{"origin":16113,"position":5},"title":"REMINDER: Texas Deaf Festival 8\/10\/19 – San Antonio","author":"Grant Laird Jr","date":"June 20, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Texas Deaf Festival Save the Date!! Date: Saturday, August 10, 2019 Time: 9:00 AM to 8:00 PM Guest Speaker: Wesley Arey, Deaf Grassroots Movement National Representative Location: Pickrell Park \"Pavilion\" 703 Oak Street Schertz, Texas 78154 (Near San Antonio) Drink, Food, Vendors, Beer, Disc, Jockey, Fun, Swimming, More! Food: BBQ\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/category\/deaf-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Texas Deaf Festival Save the Date!! Date: Saturday, August 10, 2019 Time: 9:00 AM to 8:00 PM Guest Speaker: Wesley Arey, Deaf Grassroots Movement National Representative Location: Pickrell Park \"Pavilion\" 703 Oak Street Schertz, Texas 78154 (Near San Antonio) Drink, Food, Vendors, Beer, Disc, Jockey, Fun, Swimming, More! Food: BBQ Chicken or BBQ Brisket Plate included beans, potatoes, rice, sausage, jalapeno & slice of bread for donation $10.00 Hamburger, chips & soda combo - $6.00 Hot Dog, Chips & soda combo - $6.00 The fundraising is going to the Deaf and Hard of Hearing children for school supplies and Backpacks. Donation Accepted\/Booths\/BBQ plate ticket, more information: texasdeaffestival@gmail.com\u00a0 Sponsored by Texas Deaf Festival\u00a0","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/texas-deaf-festival-updated-2019.jpeg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16113","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16113"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16113\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16118,"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16113\/revisions\/16118"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16113"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16113"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16113"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}