Dein erstes Forum » it was going to cost altogether. We just d

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Martha Ruether climbed out of the pool and listened to the crowd cheering, basking in the moment.The visually impaired swimmer had finished second in her preliminary heat of the 100-meter breaststroke at the U.S. Paralympic trials Thursday, just about the same time that, a 10-minute drive away, competitors were racing for a spot on the American roster in the 200 meters on the track at Johnson C. Smith University.For the first time, the U.S. Paralympic trials in three sports -- track and field, swimming and cycling -- are being held simultaneously in the same city. Ruether likes the idea.I think its really cool, and its a really helpful experience for the Paralympics to have it be such a big thing, so people notice it, said Ruether, from Allegany, New York. When we come to meets like this and its just swimming everybodys like, `Oh, look at the special swimmers, its a little meet, but when they have this with cycling and track, its a big thing.Generating excitement both within the Paralympic community and the wider sports world is a big part of organizers plan. The United States has historically paid relatively little attention to the Paralympics.Julie ONeill, managing director of the Paralympics for the U.S. Olympic Committee, said the idea of hosting the three major trials in one city has been bouncing around since the 2012 Olympics.It just didnt come to fruition based on timing and circumstances going into London, ONeill said. When we went to schedule trials, the three sports got together and talked about it again and made the decision to go for it.For ONeill, Charlotte was an easy choice. The city has the resources to handle the more than 400 athletes who will make it to the starting line this week, she said.Its been great, she said. Everybody local here in Charlotte has been 110 percent helpful, whether its in the specific venues or different organizations around town that weve been working with.For the athletes, hosting all three trials in one city provides a sense of community and presents an opportunity to catch up with old friends and watch them compete.One athlete, Mary Cooper of Los Angeles, both swims and does the long jump.Ive only gone to competitions where theyre separate, and so its usually like Ill have a swim sort of family and a track family, too, Cooper said. To combine them is really cool.Doug Youngblood, who spearheaded the local bid to host the trials, said the original fundraising goal was around $200,000. The committees job was made slightly more difficult since there is no precedent for hosting all three trials in one city.Were kind of learning and finding out what weve got to spend as we go, Youngblood said. Without any history, we didnt know what we were getting into and what it was going to cost altogether. We just dug in and started doing it.The fees for the venues were waived, but fundraising efforts still came up nearly $25,000 short.The biggest problem we had with it from the beginning was raising awareness, Youngblood said. A lot of people we talked to didnt know the difference between Paralympics and Special Olympics.Partners for Parks, a local nonprofit led by Youngblood, was aiming to use that money to fund the closing ceremonies on Sunday, as well as to provide a post-competition meal for athletes.The Charlotte Hornets charitable foundation, led by Michael Jordan, stepped in with a $10,000 donation to help fill the cash shortage, while others picked up the rest.Ian Silverman, a gold medal Paralympic swimmer and world record-holder, was impressed by the gesture.Its truly something special that the Charlotte Hornets organization would be able to do that, Silverman said. To have a sports figure like Michael Jordan back us