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Evening Sun - Hanover man defies disablility, directs deaf tennis team
Sounds can be taken for granted in a sport such as tennis.
The sound of the ball striking the racket or the court. The shuffling of feet on the surface. The call of the score. The yell of a linesman that a shot or serve was out.
Hanover resident Howard Gorrell has never had the privilege of hearing such sounds on a tennis court. He has been deaf since birth.
Yet, for years, Gorrell, 63, has directed his effort toward bringing the game to other deaf players who enjoy the game as much as he does and might not have the chance to play it otherwise.
"Howard is someone who leaves a powerful impression," said Rushan Samarasinghe of Mahwah, N.J., one of three players competing for the U.S. team Gorrell is presently directing in the Dresse Cup.
Samarasinghe first met Gorrell in September at the Deaf National Tennis Championships in Farmington, Conn.
"Watching Howard organize and direct the tournament, I was awed by his passion for the game and deaf culture," Samarasinghe said. "He made the tournament a wonderful experience for all of us."
The Dresse Cup, which began Saturday in Munich, Germany, and will conclude next Saturday, is a version of the Davis Cup for deaf players.
It originated in 1960 and is played every four years. Teams representing countries all over the world compete in a round-robin format to determine seeding and then play in a tournament to determine a champion.
With the exception of a one-year, job-related absence, Gorrell has directed every U.S. team in the Dresse Cup since 1978. This year's field of 18 nations is the largest ever.
The U.S. last won the Dresse Cup in 1995 when it was played on hard courts in Bradenton, Fla. It has not earned a medal since 1999.
This year's event in Munich is being played on clay, which Gorrell said was the "biggest challenge" for the U.S. team since Americans typically don't fare well on the surface.
Since 1968, Gorrell has been involved with the World Games for the Deaf, which were renamed the Deaflympics in 2001, but not always in tennis.
At the 1969 World Games in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, Gorrell threw the javelin and the hammer and placed fifth and sixth, respectively, in those events.
"Track and field was extremely popular in the area of Dayton, Ohio, which produced several Olympians," said Gorrell, who grew up in nearby Middletown. "One of them attending my high school was Edwin Moses."
Gorrell said he could have played tennis for his high school team, but tennis season always conflicted with track season.
"I loved to run the high hurdles in the same sports schedule," he said.
At the 1977 World Games for the Deaf, Gorrell was named the team manager for the U.S. tennis team.
"Deaf foreign leaders asked me if I was really deaf. I replied, 'Yes,'" Gorrell said. "The reason was that, prior to the 1977 Games, coaches were non-deaf and most deaf or hard-of-hearing players did not know sign language. So foreign leaders were unable to communicate.
"These leaders explained about the Dresse Cup for deaf men and the Maere Cup for deaf women. They asked me to bring the USA team to the 1978 edition in Paris. In return, they would vote for the USA hosting the 1980 edition since they wanted badly to play in the USA. it worked."
In 1978, Gorrell, who worked as a congressional aide on Capitol Hill, assisted U.S. Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska in drafting a provision for disabled athletes in his legislation, the Amateur Sports Act of 1978.
As a result, Gorrell was selected by the United States Olympic Committee executive board to serve on the Handicapped in Sports Committee of the United States Olympic Committee from 1979-81.
Since leaving that position, he has been very active in leading the finest U.S. deaf athletes to the world stage.
"(Howard) has been coordinating tennis tryouts every two to four years to select the best American deaf tennis players for the Cups and Deaflympics," said John Wilson, a tournament director for a deaf tennis qualifier.
"He always makes sure the tryouts are the best way to pick the players even without having any sponsors. It was amazing to do such a feat."
There are many, like Samarasinghe, who are grateful for Gorrell's efforts.
"The members of the deaf tennis team and U.S. Deaf Sports organization highly value Howard's contribution to the cause," he said. "Howard Gorrell is a proud man who a lot of people look up to for his wonderful spirit."
Sounds can be taken for granted in a sport such as tennis.
The sound of the ball striking the racket or the court. The shuffling of feet on the surface. The call of the score. The yell of a linesman that a shot or serve was out.
Hanover resident Howard Gorrell has never had the privilege of hearing such sounds on a tennis court. He has been deaf since birth.
Yet, for years, Gorrell, 63, has directed his effort toward bringing the game to other deaf players who enjoy the game as much as he does and might not have the chance to play it otherwise.
"Howard is someone who leaves a powerful impression," said Rushan Samarasinghe of Mahwah, N.J., one of three players competing for the U.S. team Gorrell is presently directing in the Dresse Cup.
Samarasinghe first met Gorrell in September at the Deaf National Tennis Championships in Farmington, Conn.
"Watching Howard organize and direct the tournament, I was awed by his passion for the game and deaf culture," Samarasinghe said. "He made the tournament a wonderful experience for all of us."
The Dresse Cup, which began Saturday in Munich, Germany, and will conclude next Saturday, is a version of the Davis Cup for deaf players.
It originated in 1960 and is played every four years. Teams representing countries all over the world compete in a round-robin format to determine seeding and then play in a tournament to determine a champion.
With the exception of a one-year, job-related absence, Gorrell has directed every U.S. team in the Dresse Cup since 1978. This year's field of 18 nations is the largest ever.
The U.S. last won the Dresse Cup in 1995 when it was played on hard courts in Bradenton, Fla. It has not earned a medal since 1999.
This year's event in Munich is being played on clay, which Gorrell said was the "biggest challenge" for the U.S. team since Americans typically don't fare well on the surface.
Since 1968, Gorrell has been involved with the World Games for the Deaf, which were renamed the Deaflympics in 2001, but not always in tennis.
At the 1969 World Games in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, Gorrell threw the javelin and the hammer and placed fifth and sixth, respectively, in those events.
"Track and field was extremely popular in the area of Dayton, Ohio, which produced several Olympians," said Gorrell, who grew up in nearby Middletown. "One of them attending my high school was Edwin Moses."
Gorrell said he could have played tennis for his high school team, but tennis season always conflicted with track season.
"I loved to run the high hurdles in the same sports schedule," he said.
At the 1977 World Games for the Deaf, Gorrell was named the team manager for the U.S. tennis team.
"Deaf foreign leaders asked me if I was really deaf. I replied, 'Yes,'" Gorrell said. "The reason was that, prior to the 1977 Games, coaches were non-deaf and most deaf or hard-of-hearing players did not know sign language. So foreign leaders were unable to communicate.
"These leaders explained about the Dresse Cup for deaf men and the Maere Cup for deaf women. They asked me to bring the USA team to the 1978 edition in Paris. In return, they would vote for the USA hosting the 1980 edition since they wanted badly to play in the USA. it worked."
In 1978, Gorrell, who worked as a congressional aide on Capitol Hill, assisted U.S. Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska in drafting a provision for disabled athletes in his legislation, the Amateur Sports Act of 1978.
As a result, Gorrell was selected by the United States Olympic Committee executive board to serve on the Handicapped in Sports Committee of the United States Olympic Committee from 1979-81.
Since leaving that position, he has been very active in leading the finest U.S. deaf athletes to the world stage.
"(Howard) has been coordinating tennis tryouts every two to four years to select the best American deaf tennis players for the Cups and Deaflympics," said John Wilson, a tournament director for a deaf tennis qualifier.
"He always makes sure the tryouts are the best way to pick the players even without having any sponsors. It was amazing to do such a feat."
There are many, like Samarasinghe, who are grateful for Gorrell's efforts.
"The members of the deaf tennis team and U.S. Deaf Sports organization highly value Howard's contribution to the cause," he said. "Howard Gorrell is a proud man who a lot of people look up to for his wonderful spirit."