UTEP assistant soccer coach Kate Ward finalist for an ESPY
UTEP assistant soccer coach Kate Ward's eventful summer picked up another milestone.
Two months after serving as captain and winning a gold medal for Team USA at the Deaflympics in Brazil, Ward is one of four finalists for an ESPY for Best Athlete with a Disability, Women's Sports.
She joins a trio of athletes who competed in the Paralympic Games in cyclist Oksana Masters, swimmer Jessica Long and snowboarder Brenna Huckaby.
Ward has been with Team USA since 2009 when she was 15 and the team has never lost. This year at the Deaflympics in Caxias do Sul, Brazil, the USA defeated Poland in a penalty shootout on May 15 to take the gold medal. It was Ward's third Deaflympics gold to go along with two championships in the Deaf World Cup.
"It's really cool," said Ward, who has cochlear implants that allow her to communicate through speech. "Sometimes I struggle to describe my experiences with this team.
"It's been the coolest thing to represent my country and to win gold medals, but also I'm surrounded by other deaf athletes, people like myself. It's really cool to be around those people and see the rise of our team as we're getting more attention and more things are happening."
The 2022 ESPYs, ESPN's annual sports awards show, are set for July 20.
Bret Bloomquist can be reached at 915-546-6359; bbomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on Twitter.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: UTEP Miners assistant soccer coach Kate Ward finalist for an ESPY
