Linda Down

Last updated

Linda Down is an American woman born with cerebral palsy. She completed the 26.1 mile 1982 and 1984 New York City Marathon on crutches, because of her lack of motor coordination as well as muscle spasticity. [1]

At a White House reception on October 27, 1982, President Ronald Reagan welcomed her with the thought that

"no one in that marathon showed more heart and more courage. Linda, the victim of cerebral palsy, is more familiar with the word 'victory' than 'victim'. She did the 26 miles of the marathon in 11 hours -- the first person to attempt to do that with the aid of crutches. And, Linda, if all of those people out there wouldn't say I was being political, I'd say you truly 'stayed the course.'" [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nancy Reagan</span> First Lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989

Nancy Reagan was an American film actress who was the first lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989, as the second wife of President Ronald Reagan, the 40th president of the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cerebral palsy</span> Movement disorders that appear in early childhood

Cerebral palsy (CP) is a group of movement disorders that appear in early childhood. Signs and symptoms vary among people and over time, but include poor coordination, stiff muscles, weak muscles, and tremors. There may be problems with sensation, vision, hearing, and speech. Often, babies with cerebral palsy do not roll over, sit, crawl or walk as early as other children. Other symptoms may include seizures and problems with thinking or reasoning. While symptoms may get more noticeable over the first years of life, underlying problems do not worsen over time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1984 Summer Paralympics</span> Multi-parasport event in the US and UK

The 1984 International Games for the Disabled, commonly known as the 1984 Summer Paralympics, were the seventh Paralympic Games to be held. There were two separate competitions: one in Stoke Mandeville, England, United Kingdom for wheelchair athletes with spinal cord injuries and the other at the Mitchel Athletic Complex and Hofstra University on Long Island, New York, United States for wheelchair and ambulatory athletes with cerebral palsy, amputees, and les autres [the others]. Stoke Mandeville had been the location of the Stoke Mandeville Games from 1948 onwards, seen as the precursors to the Paralympic Games, as the 9th International Stoke Mandeville Games in Rome in 1960 are now recognised as the first Summer Paralympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Just Say No</span> Anti-drug ad campaign

"Just Say No" was an advertising campaign prevalent during the 1980s and early 1990s as a part of the U.S.-led war on drugs, aiming to discourage children from engaging in illegal recreational drug use by offering various ways of saying no. The slogan was created and championed by Nancy Reagan during her husband's presidency.

Spastic diplegia is a form of cerebral palsy (CP) that is a chronic neuromuscular condition of hypertonia and spasticity — manifested as an especially high and constant "tightness" or "stiffness" — in the muscles of the lower extremities of the human body, usually those of the legs, hips and pelvis. Doctor William John Little's first recorded encounter with cerebral palsy is reported to have been among children who displayed signs of spastic diplegia.

Karen Ann Killilea was the subject of two bestselling books by her mother Marie Killilea, Karen and With Love from Karen. These books were groundbreaking by asserting that children with cerebral palsy could lead productive lives.

A selective dorsal rhizotomy (SDR), also known as a rhizotomy, dorsal rhizotomy, or a selective posterior rhizotomy, is a neurosurgical procedure that selectively cuts problematic nerve roots in the spinal cord. This procedure has been well-established in the literature as a surgical intervention and is used to relieve negative symptoms of neuromuscular conditions such as spastic diplegia and other forms of spastic cerebral palsy. The specific sensory nerves inducing spasticity are identified using electromyographic (EMG) stimulation and graded on a scale of 1 (mild) to 4. Abnormal nerve responses are isolated and cut, thereby reducing symptoms of spasticity.

Achilles International, formerly known as the Achilles Track Club, was established by Dick Traum in 1983 to encourage people with disabilities to participate in mainstream athletics. Achilles has become an international organization that provides support, training, and technical expertise to people at all levels. They welcome people with all kinds of disabilities, such as: visual impairment, stroke, cerebral palsy, paraplegia, quadriplegia, arthritis, amputation, multiple sclerosis, cystic fibrosis, cancer, traumatic head injury, and many others. With the help of volunteer guides, athletes participate in workouts and races using crutches, wheelchairs, handcycles, prostheses, or without aid at all.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Athletics Canada</span> Sport national governing body

Athletics Canada or AC is the national governing body for athletics in Canada, which includes track and field, cross-country running, road running, and race walking. Based in Ottawa, Ontario, Athletics Canada is a non-profit organization. The organization is led by an elected board of directors, with a head chair, currently Helen Manning.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucille Wallenrod</span> American painter

Lucille Wallenrod, also known as Lucille Wallenrod-Dreyblatt, was an American artist. She was active in Long Island, New York from 1939 until the 1990s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RJ Mitte</span> American actor and producer (born 1992)

Roy Frank "RJ" Mitte III is an American actor and producer. Born and raised in Jackson, Mississippi, Mitte was diagnosed with cerebral palsy when he was three. He moved to Hollywood in 2006, and worked with a personal talent manager to find acting opportunities where his disability could educate viewers. After making cameos in sitcoms, he was cast in his breakthrough role as Walter White Jr. on the AMC crime drama series Breaking Bad (2008–2013).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Cerebral Palsy</span> US-based nonprofit organization

United Cerebral Palsy (UCP) is an international nonprofit charitable organization consisting of a network of affiliates. UCP is a leading service provider and advocate for adults and children with disabilities. As one of the largest health nonprofits in the United States, the UCP mission is to advance the independence, productivity and full citizenship of people with disabilities through an affiliate network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barcelona Marathon</span> Annual race in Spain held since 1978

The Zurich Barcelona Marathon, formerly the Marathon Catalunya and later the Marató de Catalunya, is an annual marathon race over the classic distance of 42.195 km (26.219 mi) usually held in March in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, and first held in 1978 in Palafrugell, Catalonia. The marathon is categorized as a Silver Label Road Race by World Athletics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edith Luckett Davis</span> Mother of Nancy Reagan (1888–1987)

Edith Prescott Davis was an American film and Broadway stage actress in the 1900s through the 1920s. She was the mother of Nancy Reagan, First Lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989, and mother-in-law of president Ronald Reagan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walter White Jr.</span> Fictional character from Breaking Bad

Walter Hartwell White Jr., also known as Flynn, is a fictional character in the crime drama series Breaking Bad. Played by RJ Mitte, Walt Jr. is the son of protagonist Walter White and his wife Skyler. He has cerebral palsy, as manifested in speech difficulties and impaired motor control, for which he uses crutches. His younger sister is Holly White.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Farida Bedwei</span> Ghanaian software engineer

Farida Nana Efua Bedwei is a Ghanaian software engineer and co-founder of Logiciel, a fin-tech company in Ghana. Farida Bedwei has built mobile and enterprise applications, and is also known for her knowledge of software architecture, and deploying mobile services, particularly for banking applications.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rosie Jones (comedian)</span> British comedian and actress (born 1990)

Rosie Luisa Jones is a British comedian, writer and actress. After starting her career as a writer on panel shows, she went on to appear as a guest on The Last Leg, 8 Out of 10 Cats, 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown, QI and Hypothetical. She attended the 2020 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo as a roving reporter for The Last Leg.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karmzah</span> Ghanaian comic series

Karmzah is a physically challenged super heroine with cerebral palsy whose quest is to fight bad guys in Africa and beyond. The animation or comic character was created by Farida Bedwei and the Leti Arts team from Ghana. The comic series is found on Afrocomic app on the Google Play Store.The comic character was created in other to celebrate World Cerebral Palsy Day.

Patricia Hennin is a Canadian C4-category Paralympic swimmer, track and field athlete and para association football player who has the brain disease cerebral palsy that has paralyzed her legs. She won silver medals in each of the women's 50-metre and 200-metre freestyle C4 competitions and a single bronze medal in the women's 100 freestyle C4 event at the 1984 Summer Paralympics in New York City. Hennin also won medals at the regional and national level in both Canada and the United States, setting multiple class records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Linda Mastandrea</span>

Linda Mastandrea is a civil rights and disability attorney, author and former Paralympic athlete. She was a Paralympic and World champion in wheelchair racing.

References