Camille Waddell

Waddell was born to parents Norman and Carol Waddell and raised in Pascagoula, Mississippi.^[2] She graduated from Pascagoula High School in 1979 and earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in criminal justice from the University of Southern Mississippi in 1983.^[3] Following her marriage to Daniel Howard Black, she moved to Michigan and began working as an advertising executive for the Lansing State Journal.^[1]

While living in Michigan, Waddell competed in a swimming meet during the National Convention of Little People of America where she won two gold medals and nearly beat the world record. After receiving praise for her performance, she began to train harder and became more serious about the sport, leading her to earn a spot on the U.S. Paralympics Swimming Team.^[1] Waddell competed in the 100-meter breaststroke competition at the 1992 Summer Paralympics where she set a new world record with a time of 1:54.56.^[4] She also won a silver medal during the S6 50-meter freestyle.^[5]

As a result of her performance, Waddell was again selected to compete with Team USA at the 1996 Summer Paralympics, where she won a gold, silver, and bronze medal.^[6] She also beat her previous 100-meter breaststroke world record with a time of 1:53.48.^[4]