[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1996, Book II)]
[August 6, 1996]
[Pages 1260-1262]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks at a Ceremony Beginning the Paralympic Torch Relay
August 6, 1996

    Thank you so much. First of all, welcome to the White House. Welcome 
to the lawn. Welcome to summertime.
    I want to thank Al Mead and Andy Fleming for being here today, and 
Randy Snow and all the members of the 1996 U.S. Paralympic Team. We are 
so delighted to have you here, so excited that this is the beginning of 
the torch relay. We know that the torch that we launch here today will 
ignite the world's second largest sporting event and the first 
Paralympic Games ever to be held here in the United States.
    I want to echo what has just been said. It is very fitting that the 
torch was lit yesterday by the eternal flame at the tomb of Dr. Martin 
Luther King. His life has come to symbolize the struggle and the 
promise, the opportunity and the responsibility of our Nation. This is 
the first time his flame has been shared for any other purpose. And I'd 
like to thank Coretta Scott King and Dexter King, the entire King 
family, for sharing it with these games. It is a remarkable statement 
and an altogether fitting one. [Applause] Thank you.
    I know that our American team, many of whom are gathered here today, 
and the other teams around the world will thrill people all around the 
world with their courage and their achievements. And we will be reminded 
everywhere, but especially here in the United States, how much more we 
can accomplish when all people everywhere are given the chance to 
participate fully in our national life.
    The people in these Olympics got here because they believed in 
themselves and worked hard to achieve their goals. The organizing 
committee of the Atlanta Paralympic Games, under the leadership of Andy 
Fleming and Al Mead and many others here today, have also worked very 
hard to make these games the best ever.

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This year's games are the result of an unprecedented partnership between 
the committee, the corporate community, and the Federal Government. And 
APOC has done an outstanding job of educating corporate America about 
the value of being associated with these games. For the first time there 
will be network television coverage.
     The dedication to these games for the members of my own 
administration I can tell you has been very heartfelt, and I want to 
thank them. Education Secretary Riley himself is now down on The Mall 
waiting to receive the torch. The Vice President will have the great 
honor of declaring the games open on August 15th, and as all of you 
know, there will now be more than 3,500 athletes there from 120 
different nations.
    Our American team includes some of the finest athletes and some of 
the finest individuals in the world. Aimee Mullins, a student at 
Georgetown, my alma mater, who is here with us today, is the only 
disabled member of an NCAA Division I track team. And I thank her for 
being here and for her contribution. She's a world record holder in the 
100- and 200-meter dashes and in the long jump, and she'll be competing 
in all three of those events in Atlanta. Trischa Zorn is a swimmer from 
Indiana who's been competing since the age of 7 and has won more than 30 
gold medals in her career. Fourteen-year-old LeAnn Shannon from Orange 
Park, Florida, is the youngest member of our team and the youngest 
member ever. At this year's trials, she finished first in the 100-, 200-
, 400-, and 800-meter races. The joys of youth. She also volunteers in a 
rehabilitation hospital in her community, helping other people.
    In addition to being a world stage for some of the greatest 
athletes, the Paralympic Games will also give us an opportunity to 
reflect on where the disability movement is heading worldwide, in the 
areas of equal opportunity, economic opportunity, and access to sports 
for all people with disabilities. I'm determined to press on with 
meeting the challenge to our Nation that I put forward in 1992, a 
national disability policy based on inclusion, independence, and 
empowerment. The Paralympic Games are a powerful demonstration of what 
can happen when inclusion, independence, and empowerment become 
realities in individuals' lives with great abilities and great hearts. 
In Atlanta, experts from around the world will be discussing these 
issues in the Third Paralympic Congress, chaired by our good friend 
Justin Dart who's also here with us today and who in his own way has the 
most Olympian spirit I believe I've ever come across. We thank you for 
being here, sir. My domestic policy adviser, Carol Rasco, will cochair a 
session on how to make the athletic experience available to children 
with disabilities around the world. And we know this will be a very 
successful Congress.
    In a few minutes, the Paralympic torch, representing the triumph of 
the human spirit, will be formally presented to me on behalf of the 1996 
Paralympic team by Paralympic swimmer Diane Straub. I want to thank her 
not only for bringing the flame to the White House but also for her 
selflessness, her determination, and her achievement. The flame of her 
life burns just as brightly as the flame of these games and is lighting 
the way to others. Even with her demanding medical school studies and 
her training schedule, she still finds time to help disadvantaged 
children. She is truly a Paralympic champion and an American hero.
    I'd also like to thank the Cochair of the President's Commission on 
Physical Fitness, Tom McMillen, for being with me here today and for 
supporting the concept that physical fitness is every bit as important, 
if not more important, for Americans with disabilities than for other 
Americans. We are committed to that. And I thank you, Tom, for being 
here.
    Now, this torch is beginning its journey home to Atlanta carried by 
one of America's best. Randy Snow has been a member of six United States 
National Wheelchair Basketball teams. An accident when he was 16 left 
him a paraplegic. His enthusiasm and excellence in sports, however, did 
not diminish. He's gone on to have an outstanding career in both 
basketball and tennis. He devotes a lot of his time to extolling the 
value of recreation and wellness to people with disabilities. And in 
1994 the National Council on Disability presented him with its 
Outstanding Citizenship Award. In 1989 he won the coveted Jack Gerhardt 
Award as the Wheelchair Athlete of the Year.
    He will hand the torch off to Georgia Congressman John Lewis, who 
was, as many of you know, an associate of Dr. King, who will take it off 
the White House grounds. One thousand people will participate in the 
relay that will cover 1,000 miles. When the torch reaches Atlanta on 
August 15th, it will take its place in

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the Olympic Stadium, the most accessible arena of its kind in the world. 
I am proud that we have worked hard to make this a reality.
     Dr. King once said, ``Everybody can be great because everybody can 
serve.'' That is a great lesson of these games. In their dedication to 
excellence, equality, and community, APOC, the athletes, their families, 
their coaches are the best examples of what is right with our country. 
May this torch serve as an inspiration to all Americans to give their 
best in every endeavor, to make the most of their God-given abilities, 
and to recognize that we are all stronger and more vibrant when we 
develop, recognize, and support the talents of all of our people. May 
that be the lasting legacy of the 1996 Paralympics.
    It is now my honor to invite Diane Straub, a member of the 1996 
Paralympic team, to bring the torch to the stage.
    Diane.

 Note: The President spoke at 10:11 a.m. on the South Lawn at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to Al Mead, member, board of 
directors, and G. Andrew Fleming, president and chief executive officer, 
Atlanta Paralympic Organizing Committee (APOC); and Justin Dart, former 
Chair, President's Committee on Employment of People With Disabilities.