Here is a story that is going to take off. Phil Scholz, a freshman swimmer at Loyola College in Maryland, has burst onto the international scene. He is a swimmer and he is fast. The thing that makes the story amazing is he lost sight completely. Phil has integrated seamlessly into the Loyola community and has made an impact on his teammates and many members of the college community.
Here is an update from his first meet as he tries to qualify for the 2008 Bejing Olympics.
Loyola freshman Phil Scholz opened competition at the 2007 U.S. Paralympics Open Swimming Championships at College Park with an impressive victory and new American record in the 800-meter freestyle event. Scholz, who competes as a blind swimmer in the S11 category, broke the old record by an amazing two minutes.
Scholz' time of 10:39.85 in the 800 Free broke the old record set in 1999. He followed his 800-meter performance with a solid time in the 100 Fly, bettering his personal best by three seconds. His prelim time ranks him seventh in the world in the category and tonight he will swim against the world's sixth-ranked swimmer from China.
The U.S. Paralympics Open Swimming Championships run today through Sunday at the Eppley Recreation Center in College Park, Md. Approximately 260 physically disabled athletes from 16 countries will compete at the event, including all members of the U.S. Paralympics Swimming Elite and National Teams.
Scholz's classification of S11 means that he is completely blind. He will compete in seven events overall at this weekend's championships.
Thanks to LoyolaGreyhounds.com for the information.
Long serving Loyola College Coach Brian Loeffler has high hopes for the next few months for Scholz. Stay tuned for more updates on this and other stories from the world of Greyhound Athletics.
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