Cedarville Magazine, Summer 2017

F reshman year is a whirlwind for most students. New routines. New schedule. New friends. But Grace Norman ’20 faced a freshman-year adjustment of Olympic proportions. On September 10, 2016, Norman won the gold medal in the PT4 Triathlon at the Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She followed that outstanding performance with a bronze-medal finish in the 400-meter sprint, which she clocked at 1:01.83 seconds. What followed was a victory lap that started back home in Cedarville and took her all the way to the White House. She received numerous media requests for interviews, lots of engagement on social media, and plenty of opportunities to share her story with schoolchildren, business people, Rotarians, Kiwanians, and fellow collegians. Her golden moment has created a golden opportunity for the Gospel. “REGULAR” ROUTINE “Things have settled down since Rio with the press and all the excitement over winning gold,” she explained during lunch at the Stevens Student Center dining hall, fondly known as Chuck’s. “It’s allowed me to get in a routine with training and being a regular college student. It feels good!” Even then, Norman’s freshman experience has been exceptional. She runs the 1,500-meter and 5,000-meter distance for Cedarville track & field. “I’ve been running really well, hitting some good times during indoor and outdoor season,” she said. Her dad, Timothy, is a Professor of Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering at Cedarville, so competing for the Yellow Jackets has been a lifelong dream. Cedarville Magazine | 3