Local Teen Invited to Try Out for U.S. Paralympic Team
An Airline High School sophomore has earned quite an honor -- an invitation to try out for the Unites States Paralympic team. Her ultimate goal is to compete in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in August.
According to a family member, Melanie Bailiff competed for Airline in the LHSAA Track and Field state meet at LSU, where she set two new state records in the 100m and 200m events.
"I learned over the past weekend that the LHSAA is one of the very few organizations in the country that has 'mainstreamed' para-athletics in high school competition," the family member said in a story sent to AHS. "While the 'mainstreaming' isn't perfect, it does substantially exist. AHS was recently recognized by the Shreveport Times as the "Flagship" para-athletics school in our area. I should hope that we may expound on this as it will be a larger than known benefit to AHS and Bossier Parish."
Melanie attended her first international meets over the weekend at Arizona State University, where she earned gold medals in 100m freestyle, 50m freestyle, 50m breast stroke and women's Javelin. She also earned silver medals in women's discus, women's long jump and women's 100m, and bronze in women's 400m. That event included competitors from the United Kingdom, Argentine, Germany, the Netherlands and Jamaica.
Melanie is a member of the AHS track and swim teams. We wish her the best of luck in earning a spot on the Paralympic Team!