World Deaf Athletics Championships: Day 3

The United States made their presence felt at the World Deaf Athletic Championships on Thursday, bringing home two gold medals, a silver, and a bronze. The team now sits fifth in total medal count out of the 27 participating countries.

Delvin Furlough won Team USA their first gold medal by winning the 400 meter finals with a time of 48.97. He also ran in the 200 meter semi-finals and advanced to the final heat by placing fourth with a time of 22.95.

Janna Vander Meulen won her first gold later in the evening by winning the women’s 400 meter hurdles with a personal record of 1:04.53.

Onyemachi Davis brought home a silver medal for having placed second with his throw of 50.33 meters (165′ 1″).

Erin LaFave won a bronze medal after an impressive comeback at the end of the women’s 3000 meter steeplechase clocking in at 11:24.21.

Two athletes advanced to finals for the 800 meter race. Michael Saalfeld placed third in his heat by an incredibly small margin of .006 seconds, winning him a spot in finals with a time of 2:00.6132. John Quatroche II will also compete in the 800 meter finals after placing fifth in his heat with a time of 1:58.22.

Kyle Winter and Jonathan Ford both competed in the men’s 400 meter hurdles Thursday evening. Kyle placed 5th running a 56.98 and Jonathan placed 8th with a 1:01.27.

Three athletes competed in the semi-finals for the women’s 200 meter race. Jasilyn Williams came in fifth in her heat with a time of 27.69, Saria Webb was fourth in her heat with a 26.96, and Mariah Jackson placed third in her heat with a 26.90, narrowly missing a spot in finals.

Xylinda Collins competed in the women’s 400 meter finals and placed 8th with a time of 1:00.56.

JoyLisa Davis placed fourth in the women’s long jump with a jump of 5.47 meters (17′ 11½”).

Craig Saalfeld, participating in the decathlon, had a full day of five events: 100m dash, long jump, shot put, high jump, and 400m race. Craig currently leads the field with a total point score of 3483. The remaining five events will take place on Friday.

While Thursday was a very busy and successful day for the USA Team, they remain focused on the competitions remaining on Friday and Saturday. As Head Coach Thomas Withrow reminded the team, “we are not finished!”