With a bronze medal from the 2004 Paralympic Games behind her, Deb Gruen sets her sights on the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games.

Deb Gruen takes Bronze in Beijing
September 12, 2008

Photos

09.12.08:  Deb Gruen (Hamden, Conn.) also stood on the podium tonight, taking bronze in the women's 100m breaststroke (SB6) with a time of 1:46.76. Her first medal of the meet, the bronze medal means a great deal to Gruen, who will continue her time in Beijing following the Paralympic Games with a semester at Peking University through Yale's Honors Program." "I wasn't expecting to medal. While this morning didn't go as well as I wanted, tonight was exactly right," said Gruen. "This is the start of my whole Beijing experience. My coaches are at Yale, and I share this with them, with Yale, with my family and with Team USA." From US Paralympics

09.08.08: Deb Gruen qualified for finals and finished 7th in the 200 IM (S7).

The 2008 Paralympics begin September 6th in Beijing, but the real action will begin September 9th when Deb Gruen. makes her splash in the Water Cube. Having swum competitively since she was 7, Deb knows how to make a splash in the racing pool; she currently holds world records in the 1500M Freestyle (S7) and 200M Breaststroke (SB6).

Cheer Deb on by watching daily live and delayed highlight shows on UniversalSports.com and usparalympics.org. 

Read what US Paralympics say about Deb.

Paralympian Deb Gruen has flown under the radar of the international swimming scene since winning a bronze medal at the 2004 Paralympic Games as a 16-year-old, but not because she couldn’t cut it in the pool. She set two world records at the 2006 U.S. Paralympics Swimming National Championships and was selected to represent the U.S. at the IPC Swimming World Championships, but declined the invitation due to academic obligations at Yale University. She should be considered a medal threat in the breaststroke events at the 2008 Games in Beijing.

Gruen has been swimming since the age of five and has been competing at the national level since 1999. She was valedictorian of her high school class and began her coursework at Yale in the fall of 2006, where she is studying economics and mathematics.

Major Achievements:
•    2007: World record, 800m freestyle – Can-Am Championships, Montreal, Quebec
•    2006: Named to U.S. Paralympics Swimming World Championship Team
•    2006: Two world records, 200m breaststroke, 1500m freestyle - U.S. Paralympics Swimming National Championships, San Antonio, Texas
•    2004: Bronze medal, 100m breaststroke - Paralympic Games, Athens, Greece

Watch the Paralympic Games, Sept. 6-17, with daily live and delayed highlight shows on UniversalSports.com and usparalympics.org.  The official U.S. Paralympic Team site will also host daily video blogs from U.S. athletes and delegation members. 

The Paralympic Games are an elite sporting event for persons with physical disabilities. In Beijing, a total of 4,000 athletes from around 150 countries will be competing in 20 sports and the U.S. will be represented by 213 athletes.