[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 4]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 5555]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               TRIBUTE TO OLYMPIC SNOWBOARDER LOUIE VITO

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JIM JORDAN

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 14, 2010

  Mr. JORDAN of Ohio. Madam Speaker, I am proud to honor the 
achievements of Louie Vito on his outstanding snowboarding performance 
at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games.
  Louie is a native of Bellefontaine, Ohio, and got his first 
snowboarding experience at Bellefontaine's Mad River Mountain. He 
credits his father, Lou, with helping to nurture his passion for the 
sport early on.
  At age 13, Louie was present at the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt 
Lake City to watch American snowboarders capture the gold, silver, and 
bronze in the men's halfpipe competition. Inspired by their example, he 
dedicated himself to the sport, turning pro in 2005. He immediately 
made his mark in the world of snowboarding with a first-place finish in 
the superpipe at that year's Burton Australian Open--a feat he repeated 
in 2006.
  His strong showing in Australia set the stage for many future 
successes. Louie won the 2008 US Grand Prix and was Grand Prix co-
champion in 2009. This year alone, he won a bronze at the Winter Euro X 
Games, took second in superpipe at the US Open, and finished fifth in 
the halfpipe competition at the Vancouver Olympic Games. The people of 
Bellefontaine and from across Ohio were proud to cheer on our native 
son at the Games, spellbound by his amazing runs.
  An all-around athlete, Louie became known to millions more throughout 
the nation during his appearances on ABC's Dancing with the Stars last 
season.
  Madam Speaker, on behalf of the people of Ohio's Fourth Congressional 
District, I am honored to celebrate Louie's accomplishments, his 
dedication to sports, his integrity and work ethic, and his outstanding 
contributions to the Olympic tradition. We wish him all the best in his 
career, and look forward to watching him compete again in the 2014 
Olympic Winter Games.

                          ____________________