For readers curious about how Angela Madsen fared at the U.S. Paralympics track and field trials last weekend, I'm happy to report that she made the team for the London games this summer.
In fact, she emailed me to say she broke the world record in her shot put event with a throw of more than 30 1/2 feet.
This makes her a two-time Paralympian. She also competed in rowing in 2008 in Beijing, but missed out on a medal.
She's going for gold in London.
I featured Madsen, a former Marine who is paralyzed from the waist down, in a column last Sunday about how sports is being increasingly used as part of the rehabilitation for seriously injured veterans coming home from Afghanistan and Iraq. Thanks to progress in prosthetic limbs and medicine, more veterans are able to take part in "adaptive" sports and the Department of Veterans Affairs, the U.S. Olympic Committee and others are putting more money into programs.
Four other veterans qualified for the U.S. team at the track and field trials in Indianapolis. That makes at least 19 vets headed for the London games, Aug. 29-Sept. 9 – more than the 16 who competed in Beijing.
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