b y B a r r y S t r a s s l e r

These four seniors still have what could be their best year ahead of them... yet they've already shown promise in a myriad of competitions.

Specs Soar First in Javelin Throw Nicole O'Bryan, senior, Louisiana School for the Deaf, was in the process of hurling the javelin. Her concentration intense, she sprinted toward the line, her hands held back for the heave. All of a sudden her eye glasses fell off her face.

This didn't stop Nicole. Spec-less, she completed the javelin throw with good grace and considerable distance, despite laughter from onlookers and her own sense of instant discomfort.
When she where her glasses had landed--on the foul line, which javelin throwers are not permitted to cross or step on--her discomfort grew. Sure enough, her throw was ruled a foul in compliance with regulations that eyeglasses be considered part of the athlete's body and therefore subject to the same rules.
Nicole, perhaps the best all-round athlete that Louisiana School for the Deaf has ever produced, went on to win the gold in the javelin throw events anyway. Not stopping with a single competition, she also joined the heptathlon, the women's equivilent to the men's decathon that combines a series of track events. She won the gold in this too, establishing herself as the best deaf woman trackster.
Her success at the Deaf Sports Festival was only the latest for Nicole. She is seven times Silent News All American, winning in every sport she participated in--cross country, volleyball, basketball, and track and field.
The only contests left to win are in the Deaf World Games, which everyone calls the "Deaf Olympics." For Nicole, it's on to the Games!

Tennis Star Finds Love with Mom Carrie Camenisch, senior, Texas School for the Deaf (TSD), is one of the best private school tennis players in her state. Carrie has ignored volleyball and basketball to focus on tennis. And she has a great teacher--Fran Camenisch, the tennis coach at TSD--who is also her mother.

Carrie has two goals--to advance to the top of the Texas state championships and to beat mother Fran. Every time mother and daughter face off, mother wins. Abashed by her most recent defeat, Carrie refused to try to join the World Games for the Deaf tennis team. "When I beat my mom, I'll move up to the deaf championship tournaments," she said.

Girl is Big Hit in Football "She's tough," Jermaine Black, junior fullback for the Eastern North Carolina School for the Deaf (ENCSD), told reporters. Black was talking about his teammate--Donnell Finnamen. Donnell, a 15-year-old freshman, has become the first girl to join the ENCSD football team.

"She holds the pit," said Athletic Director Gary Farmer. At 5'8" and 202 pounds, Donnell is noseguard and defensive tackle. So far she has "knocked down players and been knocked down," said Farmer.
In class, she is an excellent student. "She is very mature," Farmer said. "Her classwork comes first; she makes no bones about it."
Donnell is the third girl in North Carolina to play football, he added. The other two were hearing girls who functioned as kickers--never facing off on the field against other players.
Nationally, Donnell is the fifth girl from a deaf school to join the game. Kathy Wilson, nose tackle for Washington State School for the Deaf in 1984, was the first. Michelle Lennert, an offensive tackle with the junior varsity California School for the Deaf Fremont in 1987 was the second. Third was Jennifer Brezinski for Indiana School for the Deaf, in 1993; the fourth girl played a scrimmage before she quit citing family pressures.
ENCSD was among the top teams until recent years, said Farmer. "Donnell joined the team help ENCSD "get back us where we used to be."

Whether on Ski Slopes or Running Track Jenny Locy, senior, Florida School for the Deaf, won the 400 meter run at the Deaf Sports Festival, practically guaranteeing her a spot on the World Games for the Deaf track and field team.

The international games, featuring deaf athletes from around the world, is often called the "Deaf Olympics." They will be held in spring, in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Jenny, an all around athlete, made Silent News' Deaf All American honors three times last season. Although she hails from Florida-- geographically the deepest of America's South, her best sport is skiing--giving her a shot at making another deaf international sports competition--the Winter World Games for the Deaf.

For more information about World Around You -Sports, contact: barry@clark.net.