Sailor to Compete in Three Events at Athens Paralympics
By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 27, 2004 - Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Casey Tibbs is
heading to Athens next week, looking for gold in the 400-meter,
4x400-meter relay and the pentathlon track and field events.
Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Casey Tibbs, 24, will compete in the
400-meter dash, the 4x400-meter relay and the pentathlon Paralympic
events in Athens, Greece, in September. He is ranked No. 2 in the world
in the 400- meter events. Tibbs is the first active duty Paralympian.
Navy photo by Petty Officer 1st Class James Pinskey
(Click photo for screen-resolution image); high-resolution image
available.
If you're thinking he's missed the starter's gun, think again. Tibbs,
24, confirmed that he is the first active duty servicemember to compete
in the Paralympics that will run Sept. 17-28.
A 110- and 300-meter hurdler at Lake Travis High School in Austin,
Texas, Tibbs graduated in 1999 and entered the Navy about a month later.
He also quit running competitively.
"I thought I was done (running)," Tibbs said.
A motorcycle accident on March 5, 2001, and the events that followed
changed his mind. Tibbs lost his right leg below the knee in that
accident. Because of the investment in his training, the Navy gave him
an option of separating or staying in. He chose to stay.
About a year after being back on active duty, he read an article about
Paralympians and was inspired. Tibbs decided he would compete in the
next Paralympics.
He said his first track meet went so well that the Paralympic coaches
called him and invited him to a national meet. He said he is currently
ranked No. 2 in the world in the 400-meter. He qualified for the 2004
games with a pentathlon score of 4,573 during the 2004 Far West Games
held at San Jose City College in California.
Rankings for the pentathlon (long-jump, shot put, discuss, 100- and
400-meter events) haven't been released yet, but he said he feels
competitive in the event. He will be among about 4,000 athletes from 130
countries to compete.
Tibbs has spent the past week in Oklahoma City, Okla., getting a new
prosthesis. He said he's been training on his new leg for the past week
and has no anxiety about running on it in his events.
"The thing about the Paralympics is, you can be a great athlete and a
good runner, but you're only going to run as good as your prosthesis is
going to allow you to run," Tibbs said.
Tibbs said he's just ready to get to Greece and start running.
"I'm really excited. It's been a lot of work," Tibbs said. "Training for
it is no fun at all. It's not a fun sport to train for. But it's all
worth it once it's over and you get a medal."
If everything goes well in Athens, Tibbs said he'd like to compete in
the 2008 Paralympics to be held in Beijing.
"From everything, it looks like the Navy supports me 100 percent," he
said, adding that the Navy Sports Department, headed by John Hickok, has
arranged for transportation to meets and provided uniforms. Tibbs said
that Hickok also worked with Adidas to secure sponsorship for him. He
said his command has been very supportive, as well.
The meaning of being the first active duty Paralympian is not lost on
Tibbs, who is stationed at Naval Security Group Activity Medina in San
Antonio, Texas.
Tibbs said he never would have expected when he lost his leg that his
life wouldn't change drastically. "When you lose your leg, people kind
of first assume that 'My life is totally different now. . I've got to
live differently,'" Tibbs said. "There are little changes, but really
for the most part, nothing's really changed for me. Everything has
changed for the better for me.
"I wouldn't ever have dreamed of going to the Paralympics . ever," he
said. "And now, (I'm about) to go to Greece to compete against everybody
else, which is a amazing."
Related Sites:
2004 Paralympic Games
Navy Sports Program
Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Casey Tibbs, 24, is headed to Athens,
Greece, to compete in the 2004 Paralympics. He'll be competing in the
400-meter dash, the 4x400-meter relay and the pentathlon, which includes
the shot put, discuss, long jump and the 100- and 400-meter dashes. Navy
photo by Petty Officer 1st Class James Pinskey
High resolution photo
News Archive
NOTE: View the original version of this web page on DefenseLINK, the
official website of the U.S. Department of Defense.
Visit the Defense Department's Web site for the latest news and
information about America's response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist
attacks and the war against terrorism: "Defend America" at
http://www.DefendAmerica.mil.
Visit the "Department of Defense Transformation" Web site at
http://www.dod.mil/transformation/ to learn more about the Department of
Defense role in transformation.
Unsubscribe from or Subscribe to this mailing list:
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/subscribe.html
|
