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Kester Edwards reaches back for a supportive handshake with Fahd El Kader El Khaial as they are poised to enter the San Francisco Bay for the RCP Tiburon Mile; also waiting are Eduardo Herrera (far left) and Jenny Fung, next to Edwards. The Special Olympics athletes wore fluorescent pink swim caps to designate their division. [All photos by Steven Hellon] |
As he emerged from the San Francisco Bay, hundreds of people cheered for him and he in response proudly chanted back his home country. Fahd El Kader El Khaial of Egypt was one of nine Special Olympics athletes who swam the one nautical mile (1,852 meters; approximately 2,000 yards) trek in the 62 degree waters from Angel Island to the town of Tiburon in the 6th annual RCP Tiburon Mile, which was held Sunday, 19 September, near San Francisco, California (USA). The Special Olympics athletes were nine of the 700 swimmers — including Olympic and world-class elite athletes and open water specialists — to test themselves in the internationally known race.
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The following are the finishing times for the Special Olympics athletes:
• Wie Yip Tam – 25:32 (wetsuit division)
• Andy Miyares – 26:58 (wetsuit division)
• Eduardo Herrera – 27:15
• Ancil Greene – 29:10 (wetsuit division)
• Sam Silver – 31:21 (age group division)
• Kester Edwards – 33:38 (wetsuit division)
• Jenny Fung – 34:37 (age group division)
• Fahd El Kader El Khaial – 36:22 (wetsuit division)
• Jeffery Peterman – 38:46 (age group division) |
The nine athletes who participated in this event certainly surprise people when they hear about their accomplishments:
- San Francisco Bay area athlete Sam Silver is an accomplished long-distance swimmer who prefers to swim in icy waters and refers to himself as the "Ice Man." This year was his 5th RCP Tiburon Mile. Silver has also participated in the Bay to Breakers open water swim — a 10-mile trek from the Bay Bridge to the Pacific Ocean — and made a valiant attempt to swim the English Channel.
- Andres "Andy" Miyares of Miami, Florida (USA) is the only swimmer with Down syndrome in the world to be ranked by the International Paralympic Committee — ranking 36th in the world in 400-meter freestyle and 33rd in the world in 100-meter butterfly. At this year's Paralympic trials, Miyares beat two Pan American records and won four first-place finishes in the mile.
- Ancil Greene of Trinidad & Tobago used the Tiburon Mile as a warm-up for the two-mile open water swim he will compete in this upcoming weekend in his home country. Greene is a top triathlete in his country, placing first in the National Sprint Triathlon and second (twice) in the full National Triathlon. Greene also has run 10 marathons, placing in the top 20 finishers in three of those races.
- Guatemala considers him one of the top triathletes in the entire country: Eduardo Herrera has completed 11 Ironman triathlons, finishing with his best time of 11 hours and 52 minutes. He has also won second in his age category in the Ironman Sprint Triathlon in Provo, Utah. He won a gold medal in the 800 meters and a bronze in the 1500 meters at the 2003 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Dublin, Ireland.
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And they're off! Special Olympics Northern California athlete Jeffrey Peterman, a veteran of the RCP Tiburon Mile (he competed his first race in 2001) enters the Bay. |
Also among the RCP Tiburon Mile Special Olympics athletes were Kester Edwards, who was featured posing with top tennis professional Serena Williams in Giorgio Armani's tribute to world-class athletes, Faces of Sport; Jeffery Peterman of San Rafael, California, who travels the country as a volunteer and is an accomplished pianist; College of Marin (California) student Jenny Fung; accomplished swimmer Wie Yip Tam of Hong Kong; and Fahd El Kader El Khaial of Egypt, who has competed in two Special Olympics World Summer Games, garnering a silver medal in the 200-meter freestyle and a bronze medal as a member of a 4 x 50 freestyle relay at the 2003 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Dublin, Ireland.
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Wie Yip Tam of Special Olympics Hong Kong strokes through the chilly water on his way to finishing first, with a time of 25 minutes 32 seconds, among the Special Olympics division. |
On the morning of the race, swimmers awoke to pouring rain, which lasted through registration, but as soon as the athletes boarded the boat which transported them to Angel Island, the sun broke through the clouds. The last boat to arrive atthe island was the boat transporting the Olympians and Special Olympics athletes. As each of the Special Olympics athletes approached the beach, the crowd of spectators — more than 700 people — parted and cheered on the athletes as they donned the fluorescent pink swim caps (which designated their Special Olympics division). Among the fans were Special Olympics Chairman and CEO Tim Shriver and Special Olympics Vice Chair Ray Lane.
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Jenny Fung of Special Olympics Northern California finishes in 34:37 — in front of non-disabled swimmers wearing insulating wetsuits. |
With a gun shot start, the athletes hit the water and swam the nautical mile back to Tiburon. Olympic swimmer Chad Carvin made it back in 20 minutes and 23 seconds, winning the race overall. Female race winner was Olympic swimmer Sara McLatry of Australia. In the Special Olympics division, Wie Yip Tam of Hong Kong won with a time of 25:32, placing 133rd overall, just five minutes behind Olympian Brooke Bennett. "It is astronomical that these athletes were able to accomplish this race," said Anna Miyares, mother of Andy. "They proved so much to everyone just by participating, but the amazing thing is that they all finished before half of the participants who don't even have any disabilities."
For the past six years, The RCP Tiburon Mile has been benefiting Special Olympics, raising more than US$100,000. But this year, in an amazing act of philanthropy and a desire for attitude change, one man made this year's event record breaking.
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Special Olympics volunteer Bill Dick greets Sam Silver as he finishes the RCP Tiburon Mile, a race he has now completed five times. |
Bill Price, founding partner of Texas Pacific, not only raised more than US$150,000 for this year's event, but he decided that this year, participants and spectators of the RCP Tiburon Mile would witness the ability of a group of Special Olympics athletes (Silver and Peterman are both veterans of the race). Price generously flew in Special Olympics athletes from around the world to compete amongst the likes of Olympic athletes Brooke Bennett, Chad Carvin, Klete Keller, Erica Rose and Scott Goldblatt.
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As the Special Olympics athletes look on, Larry Garlick, Board Chair of Special Olympics Northern California (left), accepts a check signifying the fundraising efforts of Bill Price (center). |
"I think it helps fight prejudice against people by demonstrating in a very tangible way what these young people can achieve with training and hard work," said Price, who is himself a competitive swimmer and is a two-time winner of the Tiburon Mile Mayor's Cup. "I am particularly inspired by the endurance athletes, such as those who swim the Tiburon mile, because of the long-term dedication to training and overcoming of physical and mental obstacles — which are daunting even to those without disabilities."
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From left, Bob Placak, who founded the race in 1998; Bill Price, founding partner of Texas Pacific and a competitive swimmer himself, who funded air transportation and accommodations for the six athletes traveling from outside the state, paid competition entry fees for the entire Special Olympics group, and hired an open water coach to train the California-based athletes weekly; Wie Yip Tam, the first Special Olympics finisher overall; and Sam Silver, the first Special Olympics athlete to finish without a wetsuit.
"By providing the opportunity for swimmers of all calibers to compete with each other, it is possible for world-class swimmers, Olympians and Special Olympics athletes to inspire each other by standing together with determination and strength," said Placak. "This year we have reached a pinnacle, with participating Olympians direct from the Athens Games and Special Olympics athletes from around the world." |
Price's generousity extended even further: as the first Special Olympics finisher overall, Tam was awarded an all-expense-paid trip, funded by Price, to Shanghai, China, for the 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games. Silver also won a trip to the Games as the first Special Olympics athlete in without a wetsuit; he, Peterman, another veteran of the RCP Tiburon Mile, and Fung each elected to swim without the insulating properties of a wetsuit.
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Special Olympics Chairman and CEO Tim Shriver (center) congratulates Special Olympics Trinidad & Tobago's Ancil Greene for completing the RCP Tiburon Mile. Also pictured, Special Olympics Egypt coach Reda Mohamed Ahmed Abou Zeid (left) and athlete Fahd El Kader El Khaial. |
The Special Olympics athletes arrived in Tiburon on Wednesday, 15 September, to begin getting acclimated to the water temperature and, for the international and East Coast athletes, the difference in time zones. On Thursday, 16 September, the athletes gathered at Aquatic Park at Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco, where they had their first dip in the Bay. Olympic gold-medalist Brooke Bennett, Bob Placak (who founded the Tiburon Mile in 1998) and Price joined the group to offer inspiration as they first experienced the cold waters of the Bay.
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Shriver spends some time at the post-race cookout chatting with Special Olympics Florida (USA)'s Andres "Andy" Miyares, the only swimmer with Down Syndrome in the world to be ranked by the International Paralympic Committee. |
Each day leading up to the race, the athletes kept to a rigorous training schedule spending at least 30 minutes a day swimming in the Bay. On Saturday, 18 September, they were also treated to a swimming clinic at the College of Marin where Olympic swimmers Brooke Bennett, Klete Keller Kalyn Keller, Erica Rose, Sara McLartry and Grant Cleland helped them with their techniques. "The clinic was very helpful," said Edwards, a Special Olympics athlete from Washington D.C. "I learned that I need to make more of an 'L' with my elbow when I do my freestyle stroke."
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The day before the race, at the College of Marin, Brooke Bennett and fellow Olympic swimmers including Klete Keller Kalyn Keller, Erica Rose, Sara McLartry and Grant Cleland held a clinic to work with the Special Olympics athletes participating in the RCP Tiburon Mile. Front row, from left, Sam Silver, Fahd El Kader El Khaial, Wie Yip Tam, Ancil Greene and Eduardo Herrera. Middle row, Andy Miyares, Kester Edwards, Jenny Fong and Jeffery Peterman. |
That evening, race sponsors, Olympic athletes and race organizers gathered at Servino's restaurant in Tiburon to celebrate the race and the Special Olympics athletes in attendance. Janet Evans (four-time Olympic gold medalist, inducted into the U.S. Swimming Hall of Fame on 1 July 2004, member of the Sports Management Team of Special Olympics Southern California) said a few words about how her inspiration is an Special Olympics athlete in Southern California who reminded her that it is truly about the love of the sports rather than winning.
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From left, Special Olympics athletes Wie Yip Tam, Fahd El Kader El Khaial, Kester Edwards, Sam Silver, Andy Miyares, Jenny Fong and Jeffery Peterman listen to technique tips from Brooke Bennett, standing next to the diving board. |
It's a favorite anecdote for Evans: at a 12 June "Breakfast With Champions," part of the 35th Annual Special Olympics Southern California Summer Games at Cal State Long Beach, 11–13 June 2003, Evans had reminisced about her three-time Olympic experience and noted that while she finished sixth and ninth in her two races at the 1996 Atlanta Games, those are what she considers her favorite. "It was the most fun I ever had at an Olympics," Evans said. She said she realized why the 1996 Games were a favorite after hearing Special Olympics Southern California athlete Dustin Plunkett speak at the Wooden Classic (an annual college basketball tournament) dinner last December. "He said the best part about Special Olympics is simply competing and cheering on your teammates, and that everyone feels like a champion," Evans said.
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Special Olympics Guatemala athlete Eduardo Herrera pushes off in the pool during a the practice clinic. |
As noted, all Special Olympics swimmers finished ahead of half the field, and all well ahead of the pre-established cutoff time of 55 minutes (which ensures the safety of swimmers) for the entire swim. The RCP Tiburon Mile has the following divisions: Elite Division swimmers (highly competitive swimmers capable of being among the top finishers and who compete for cash awards; wetsuits or bodysuits not allowed). All non-elite swimmers are placed in either the Age Group Division swimmers (grouped by age, competing for an age group division prize rather than a cash award; a majority of the swimmers fall in this category) or Wetsuit Division swimmers (swimmers who choose to wear a wetsuit, eligible for wetsuit division prizes). The RCP Tiburon Mile considers any suit that goes above the hip or below the top of the knee cap as a bodysuit or wetsuit — swimmers in the age group or elite divisions wearing a bodysuit (a.k.a. "legskin") are disqualified.
Below, Special Olympics athletes, family members, coaches, staff and supporters celebrate postrace.
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