Sports

Middle River's Long Repeats ESPY Awards Win

Paralympic swimmer Jessica Long received the 2013 ESPY Award for Best Female Athlete with a Disability. It is her third ESPY win since 2007.

Jessica Long, Middle River's highly decorated Paralympic swimmer, flew to California Wednesday morning to attend the ESPY Awards the same night at the Nokia Theater in Los Angeles.

Dressed in a flowing long dress, Long got the red carpet treatment at the ceremony that drew the top names in the sports and entertainment worlds.

And when she left, she took her third ESPY trophy with her.

Long was named the Best Female Athlete with a Disability in the annual program that honors top athletes, teams, the best moments in sports and best comeback athletes, among other categories of sporting accomplishment.

“I used to dream about the life I'm living now,” Long wrote on her Facebook page Wednesday night. "Thank you from the bottom of my heart to everyone who voted. So extremely honored. This ESPY is for you! xo"

Maryland had a heavy presence among nominees, with Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps, the Baltimore Ravens, Joe Flacco and disabled track athlete Tatyana McFadden of Howard County among those in the running for the coveted awards.

McFadden—who recently won the women's wheelchair division of the Boston and London marathons—and Long competed in the same category.

Phelps won two awards, for Best Male Olympic Athlete and Best Record-Breaking Performance.

With this year's victory in the popular-vote contest, Long collected her third ESPY. She repeated her 2012 win, and also received the award in 2007.

Long, who began her competitive swim career as a member of the Dundalk-Eastfield Swim Club, has competed in the 2004, 2008 and 2012 Paralympics, as well as numerous other national and international swim meets.

She won three gold medals as a 12-year-old at the Athens Games in 2004; collected six medals, including four golds,  at the Beijing games in 2008; and added eight more medals, with five golds, at last summer's Paralympic Games in London.

Long, whose family lives in Middle River, now lives and trains at the United State Olympic Committee's training center in Colorado as a member of the national Paralympic swim team.


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