Courtesy: USA Deaf Swimming
USA Deaf Swimming is pleased to announce the selection of athletes for the 2019 World Deaf Swimming Championships. The World Championships will be held in Sao Paulo, Brazil on August 25-31, 2019. The following athletes have been selected to represent the United States as members of Team USA at this event, the highest level of worldwide competition for deaf athletes this year. The World Deaf Swimming Championships typically alternate every other year with the Deaflympics which occur every four years. Both competitions are sanctioned by the International Committee for Deaf Sports (ICSD) and operate under FINA regulations.
Over 30 countries will be represented at this world championship meet. Team USA athletes range in age from 13 to 22 and come from ten different states across the U.S. All athletes must have a hearing loss of at least 55 dB in the better ear plus meet minimum time cuts in order to be eligible to participate in international deaf competition.
2019 World Deaf Swimming Championships Athlete Roster
| Athlete | Hometown | Swim Club |
| Men’s Team | ||
| Matthew Klotz | Cameron Park, CA | Tiger Aquatics |
| Tyler Brown | Fort Thomas, KY | Northern Kentucky Clippers |
| Collin Davis | Durham, NC | YOTA Swim Team |
| Daniel Pletenets | Jacksonville, FL | Episcopal Amberjax Swim Team |
| Cooper Willetts | Kingwood, TX | PACK Swimming |
| Matthew Zou | Ellicott City, MD | Columbia Association Swim Team |
| Women’s Team | ||
| Elizabeth Cocker | Rancho Cordova, CA | Unattached |
| Carli Cronk | San Antonio, TX | Alamo Area Aquatics |
| Katie DiBenedetto | Danville, IN | Hendricks Elite Aquatics Team |
| Trysta Duerson | Edmond, OK | Bison Aquatic Club |
| Samantha Fujii | Los Angeles, CA | Rose Bowl Aquatics |
| Molly Likins | St. Clair, MI | Unattached |
| Emily Massengale | Bradenton, FL | Sarasota Tsunami Swim Club |
| Brooke Thompson | Bloomfield Hills, MI | Motor City Aquatics |
| Kaitlin Weatherby | Sewell, NJ | Unattached |
| Anquniece Wheeler | Detroit, MI | Detroit Recreational Swim Team |
The team will be led by Brad Robbins, Head Coach, and Chris Daly, Assistant Coach. Brad Robbins, is currently Head Coach of the Tigard Tualatin Swim Club in Tigard, Oregon, and has nearly 20 years of experience coaching athletes from age group to the collegiate level at local, state, and national competitions including Olympic trials. Coach Chris Daly is currently Assistant Coach of Sarasota Tsunami Swim Team in Sarasota, Florida, and brings strong coaching experience working with both deaf and hearing athletes at the age group and senior levels. They will provide outstanding leadership for this team of deaf athletes at the upcoming meet.
Team USA is managed by USA Deaf Swimming, the nonprofit swimming organization that oversees and supports deaf swimming within the United States. The goal of USA Deaf Swimming is to promote competitive swimming amongst deaf athletes and increase the number of deaf athletes competing at all levels in the sport of swimming.
More information is available at the USA Deaf Swimming website, www.deafswim.org.