Arlington resident Alyssa Gialamas brought back two medals and a new record from the Parapan American Games in Lima.
The two-time Paralympian athlete won a Gold medal for the 50 meter backstroke as well as a Silver medal for the 200 meter freestyle. Gialamas said she began the multi-event Games with her best race, the backstroke, and finished the with another strong race, the 200 meter freestyle.
Coming in at 47.65 seconds during the backstroke, she also set a new Parapan record.
“I haven’t swam that fast since 2015,” she told ARLnow, adding that “I ended up with a gold in the 50 meter backstroke, so I was really really happy.”
Gialamas was born with arthrogryposis, a condition which keeps some of the joints in her leg from moving easily and began swimming as physical therapy but said she found freedom in the water. When in the water, she says she relies on upper body strength instead of her legs.
By day, she works as a sales consultant with Cigna in McLean where she’s “really blessed” by her coworkers’ enthusiasm of following the race and her company’s support. Netting a medal and a record was also proof the 24-year-old athlete could juggle both worlds.
“To be able to come back and show that you can do both and I can swim just as fast as when I had a full time job as when I didn’t have a full time job made it worth it,” she said.
Gialamas’ balancing act is notable considering she was among the oldest on her team — a fact teammates teased her about.
“I was called Mom a lot of times on the trip and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh,'” she said.
The Illinois-born swimmer said there wasn’t much time to explore Lima between the team’s dawn-till-dusk schedule, but she did bring back one souvenir: a nasty cold.
For now, Gialamas says she’s going to catch up on sleep, take a month to recoup from her training regime that’s split between Arlington and Baltimore, and consider what she wants to do next.
“I’m really happy with how it turned out, she said. “I’m just trying to focus on where the next steps take me, and I think that’s a good way to do it because I’m just happy with how I swam and how I respected Team USA.”
Arlington resident and Paralympian swimmer Alyssa Gialamas is flying to Peru this week for the Parapan American Games.
Gialamas, 24, is a two-time Paralympian who competed in the 2012 London and 2016 Rio Games. Now, she’s off to Lima to compete in the Parapan games from August 23 to September 1 — a competition she says many para-athletes use to prepare for the next Olympics.
“I made my first Team actually at the Parapan games in Guadalajara in 2011,” Gialamas said of the competition where she won four silver medals and which led her to her first Paralympics.
A Chicago native, Gialamas was born with a condition called arthrogryposis, which prevents some of her joints from moving freely. Her parents started her swimming at three years old as a form of physical therapy.
“I’ve always loved the water, and felt free in the water, and felt like I can do anything I want,” she said. “I think that’s why I stuck with it for so many years.”
Gialamas uses long leg braces on land and joked that she actually thinks, “my body works better in the water than it does on land.”
“In the water you’re limitlessness,” she said. “There’s nothing holding you back.”
Because of the way arthrogryposis affects her legs, Gialamas doesn’t use them when she swims, instead relying on upper body strength.
Since diving into the competition eleven years ago with the Great Lakes Adaptive Sports Association, Gialamas won six Illinois state high school championships, and held 22 American records for short and long-course swimming.
At 17 years old, she competed in the London Paralympics, coming in fifth place in the 200-meter freestyle competition. Four years later, she competed again in Rio. After both Paralympics, she met then-President Obama together with the rest of Team USA, an experience she described as “absolutely incredible.”
— Alyssa Gialamas (@AlyssaGialamas) November 2, 2016
This year she faces a new challenge: balancing her work schedule with her training goals. Although Gialamas lives in Arlington, she works as a sales consultant with Cigna in McLean and still trains at her Loyola University Maryland college swim team facility in Baltimore two days a week.
“I’ve seen a lot of sunrises,” she jokes, explaining that the schedule means working out of the McLean office three days a week, and out of the company’s Baltimore office two days a week. Every day she aims to arrive at the Baltimore pool, or at the Washington-Liberty High School pool near her Arlington apartment, at 5:30 a.m.
“Because of that I want to swim fast and show people that not only can I work a full-time job, but I can stay as fast as possible,” she said.
“Alyssa has overcome obstacles that would deter most, but these challenges have only fueled her competitive spirit as she sets out to accomplish her lifelong goals,” said Cigna’s Mid-Atlantic Market President Monica Schmude, who added that the health services company is “very proud” of Gialamas and is committed to employee health.
This year’s games will also be a bit different thanks to the U.S. Olympic Committee’s recent name change to the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee, to include all of the games’ athletes. The renaming comes a year after the organization increased Paralympian prize earnings to equal Olympians’ pay.
“It’s funny that it only added a ‘p’ to the name, but it’s a very big deal,” said Gialamas.
The Arlington athlete is scheduled to depart on Wednesday for the next challenge in Lima, and will race in the 50-meter backstroke and 50-, 100- and 200-meter freestyle events.
Next week, Kenmore Middle School will be recognized as one of the country’s top five schools for including special needs students in its community.
The Special Olympics selected Kenmore last fall and will present the Unified Champion Schools National Recognition Program award next Friday, April 12, from 1-2 p.m. at the middle school.
Winning schools were chosen based on demonstrating “excellence” for including special needs students in sports and youth leadership, among other benchmarks.
The award is being presented alongside ESPN.
ESPN is Coming. Come join the Inclusion Revolution! Kenmore Middle School is a Unified Championship School. #TheRevolutionIsInclusion#SpecialOlympics @APSKenmore @michelewhubert @KenmorePTA @APSVirginia @arlinclusion @fox5dc @AutismAPS @BestBuddiesCR pic.twitter.com/uyY2BOc4hC
— KMSLifeSkills (@KMSEurith) March 29, 2019
Can't stop the feeling… or the CHEERING when you learn that @ESPN is coming to YOUR SCHOOL in April to present your @SpecialOlympics Unified Champion Schools banner. @APSKenmore just found out the news – high-fives all around! #InclusionRevolution https://t.co/3leXgC0pZE pic.twitter.com/SQ06MPXbPv
— Special Olympics VA (@SOlympicsVA) September 10, 2018
Yorktown and Washington-Lee high schools are also Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools, according to a map of participants.
The program reported that nationwide 6,500 schools participate in the program, which allows 272,000 students to participate in sports inclusive of special needs.
The Unified Schools Program is managed by the Special Olympics and funded via a grant from the U.S. Office of Special Education Programs, per its website.
Separately, President Trump recently backtracked on his administration’s plan to cut funding for the Special Olympics after public outcry mounted in support of the program, reported Politico.
Out of 30 qualifying schools across the nation, Kenmore Middle School has been selected as one of five schools chosen for the Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools National Recognition Program.
The program recognizes schools that have met all 10 national standards of excellence set out by the leaders of the Special Olympics.
These standards include unified sports that allow students with and without disabilities to train and play as teammates, inclusive youth leadership, and engagement throughout the school. Schools must also demonstrate a plan to sustain these activities for years to come.
On April 12, ESPN will recognize Kenmore Middle School in a national banner awards ceremony.
Can't stop the feeling… or the CHEERING when you learn that @ESPN is coming to YOUR SCHOOL in April to present your @SpecialOlympics Unified Champion Schools banner. @APSKenmore just found out the news – high-fives all around! #InclusionRevolution https://t.co/3leXgC0pZE pic.twitter.com/SQ06MPXbPv
— Special Olympics VA (@SOlympicsVA) September 10, 2018
Photo via Special Olympics Virginia
While the D.C. region was gearing up for the Presidential Inauguration this week, Arlington resident Andrea Molfetto kept her focus on a loftier goal — standing atop a mountain in PyeongChang, Korea. That’s where the Special Olympics coach is headed this week with her alpine skiing team for the World Winter Games.
Andrea has assisted with Special Olympics events since she was in college, and has been a ski coach for the organization since moving to Arlington in 2008. This is her first time accompanying a team to the World Winter Games, which takes place every four years.
Andrea, 11 other coaches, and their 43 ski team members leave for Richmond today where they’ll join other Virginia athletes before heading to Los Angeles tomorrow. Once in L.A., they become Team USA along with athletes from around the country, then travel to Korea on Friday. More than 3,000 people from around the world are expected to visit PyeongChang for the games.
Opening ceremonies take place on January 29 and the games run through February 5. The ski team will be competing nearly every day until the games end.
“It’s pretty intense, but it’s going to be a good time,” Molfetto said. “The athletes are looking forward to it. They worked really heard, they put in a lot of time and energy to get to this point in their states and to represent Team USA.”
Molfetto said that while the Winter Games closely mirror the traditional Olympics, coaching athletes with special needs presents unique challenges.
“It’s easy sometimes because they’re willing and able,” Molfetto said. “But with special needs athletes you do have to deal with outside forces and athletic abilities. Sometimes you have to pick up on signs if an athlete is getting tired. Or if they appear ready to go to the next level, then maybe push them to the next level.”
There will be about three days set aside for sightseeing and meeting the American ambassador before the games begin, but the athletes are mostly focused on getting on the mountain to ski.
“It’s humbling. They are really dedicated. They really want to do a good job,” Molfetto said. “That shows when you’re coaching them and giving them advice. They want to learn, they want to get better. And they teach me things all the time. It’s a a great experience.”
Despite all the time she has spent volunteering with Special Olympics over the years, Molfetto said she’s never experienced anything quite like this.
“I travel a lot for work, I’m a pretty decent international traveler, but never bringing a team somewhere,” said Molfetto. “Never doing something like this, or representing my country in this type of capacity. It’s pretty awesome. I’m honored I’ve been selected to do this.”
Homeless children from a shelter in Arlington will be donating more than $500 to the Special Olympics this afternoon.
The children live in Sullivan House, a shelter for homeless families in Clarendon run by the Arlington-Alexandria Coalition for the Homeless. Together with parents, volunteers, and AACH staff, thirteen children between the ages of five and 13 ran a lemonade stand outside the shelter throughout the summer. They raised just over $1,000, according to AACH Lauren Marigot Barth.
“They learned about customer service, managing money, and marketing,” Barth said. “They also did a really good job!”
The children voted to donate half of the money raised to the Special Olympics. A representative from the organization — which organizes athletic competitions for children and adults with intellectual disabilities — will be on hand at Sullivan House this afternoon to officially receive the donation.
The rest of the money will help to fund a trip to Busch Gardens.
Photos courtesy Arlington-Alexandria Coalition for the Homeless
Celebrities like DC 101 morning show DJ Elliot Segal, of “Elliot in the Morning” fame showed up at the Hilton Crystal City (2399 Jefferson Davis Highway) to dangle from the side of the building.
It’s all part of Special Olympics Virginia’s “Over the Edge” fundraiser. Today, local celebrities including ABC 7’s Steve Chenevey and Arlington Connection’s Deb Cobb joined Elliot in taking part in the event. They each did a test run from only one story up, then moved on to the big event — a 15 story rappel.
Tomorrow, Friday, the fundraiser is open to the public. Participants are asked to donate $1,000 for the chance to rappel down the side of the hotel. Many groups pooled together money and signed up co-workers for the daredevil stunt.
The event tomorrow runs from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Sixty people are signed up to rappel down the hotel, but there are still spots available for people who want to sign up on site. Participants have one month to come up with the $1,000 donation.
An Olympic torch will be making its way through Arlington on Thursday. Not the one that’s going to be lighting up London in a few months, but the Virginia Special Olympics torch.
More than 2,000 law enforcement officers take part in the eight day Virginia Law Enforcement Torch Run, when the torch is carried on a 1,900 mile trek across the state. Forty-seven Arlington County Police Department personnel will participate.
Opening ceremonies begin at the Marine Corps Memorial in Rosslyn at 9:00 a.m. tomorrow, June 7, and the torch run begins at 9:30 a.m. During the run, officers will head over the Memorial Bridge, past Gravelly Point, past Reagan National Airport and will hand off the torch at the Alexandria line. Full route details can be found online. Spectators are welcome to cheer on the athletes along the route.
Following the run, which originates in seven different parts of the state, the torch will end up at the Special Olympics Virginia Summer Games Opening Ceremony in Richmond. At that point, a Special Olympics athlete will receive the torch and light the new Olympic Cauldron.
A police chief in Kansas spearheaded the first torch run in 1981 to raise awareness and funds for Special Olympics. Virginia’s first torch run took place in 1986.
“Now in its 27th year, the Virginia Law Enforcement Torch Run, has raised more than $14 million for Special Olympics Virginia, including a record-breaking $924,000 this year alone,” according to an ACPD press release.
All 50 states as well as 40 countries hold similar torch run events.
