Angelelli

Cheryl

Angelelli-Kornoelje

Paralympian 2000, 2004, 2008

  • 0

    GOLD

  • 2

    SILVER

  • 2

    BRONZE

Athlete Bio#

Hometown

Detroit

In 1998, Angelelli returned to competitive swimming after a 15-year absence.
 
Just two years later, she earned a spot on the 2000 U.S. Paralympic Swimming Team and competed at the Paralympic Games in Sydney. She then went on to make the 2004 U.S. team and competed in Athens, Greece, where she won two bronze medals (200m & 4x50m freestyle relay) and served as team co-captain.
 

Amazingly, four years later, Angelleli won two silver medals at the 2008 Paralympic Games in Beijing, China.  At the 2010 IPC Swimming World Championships in Eindhoven, Netherlands Angelelli took home one gold medal (200 IM) and two silver medals (100m freestyle and 200m freestyle).

She sustained a spinal cord injury as a teenager when she broke her neck practicing a new racing dive in 1983. Despite the challenges of living as a quadriplegic, Angelelli turned stumbling blocks into stepping stones and turned tragedy into triumph.

A graduate of Oakland University in Rochester Hills, Mich., Angelelli holds a bachelor's degree in communications. Her interest in television journalism led her to freelance as a writer and reporter prior to her current employment as director of marketing and public relations for the Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan. In 1991, she was crowned Ms. Wheelchair Michigan and went on to win the title of First Runner-Up Ms. Wheelchair America.

During her reign, she traveled as a motivational speaker, dispelling the myths and stereotypes about persons with disabilities. Angelelli is also a freelance journalist, model and product spokesperson for Invacare wheelchairs.

Angelelli’s success in the pool and in life is the subject of a documentary film entitled “Untold Dreams.” For more information on the film, visit www.untolddreams.net. Angelelli co-produced the film to help build awareness about the Paralympics and the many abilities of persons with disabilities.

 Major Achievements:
  • 2011: Team member, U.S. Pan Pacific Para-Swimming Championships 
  • 2010: Gold medal, 200m individual medley; two silver medals, 100m freestyle, 200m freestyle – IPC Swimming World Championships, Eindhoven, Netherlands
  • 2008: Silver medal, 100m Freestyle S4; silver medal, 50m Freestyle S4 – Paralympic Games, Beijing, China
  • 2006: Two gold medals, 100m freestyle, 200m freestyle; silver medal, 50m freestyle – IPC Swimming World Championships, Durban, South Africa
  • 2006: First place, 100m freestyle, 200m freestyle - U.S. Paralympics Swimming National Championships, San Antonio, Texas
  • 2004: Two bronze medals, S4 200m freestyle, 4x50m Freestyle Relay 20pt. - Paralympic Games, Athens, Greece
  • Two-time Michigan Athletes with Disabilities Hall of Fame Disabled Female Athlete of the Year (2000, 2003)
  • 2002: Two silver medals, 4 x 50 medley relay 20 pt., 4 x 50 free relay 20 pt. – IPC Swimming World Championships, Mar del Plata, Argentina
  • 2000: Female Amateur Athlete of the Year for the State of Michigan, presented by Governor's Council on Physical Fitness, Health and Sports
  • 2000: Inducted into Michigan Athletes with Disabilities Hall of Fame
  • 2000: Member of the U.S. Paralympic Team
  • 2000: Gold medal, 100m freestyle - National Championships

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