Tom Gay, a political science major from Tifton, recently won a gold medal for Extemporaneous Speaking when the Abraham Baldwin College Forensics Team competed in the Phi Rho Pi National Championship in Jacksonville, Fla. Gay was the only student from the state of Georgia to win a medal at the national tournament this year.
"It's a great achievement," Gay said. "I am glad I got involved with the forensics team because it has helped me in a lot of different ways. Winning a gold medal is unbelievable. I never expected to go this far, and I feel very fortunate."
Approximately 500 students from about 75 different colleges across the country participated in the tournament. Gay competed against 150 students in the extemporaneous speaking event. Participants were given three topics relating to current events and had 30 minutes to prepare a seven-minute speech.
Gay, who has already received a scholarship to Berry College to compete on its forensics team in 2002, will attend ABAC for another year.
"I am really looking forward to competing next year," Gay said. "We have a very talented team here at ABAC. The entire program is definitely on the rise. This was the first medal ABAC has ever won at a national tournament, and I think we took a lot of people by surprise."
Director of Forensics Sheila Hughes said she was not surprised that Gay won a gold medal.
"Tom is extremely talented, and I knew he would perform well in the tournament," Hughes said. "I was overwhelmed to see the response he received from his competitors. They were really impressed by his performance, and I could tell they respected him. I am thrilled that Tom will be on our team again next year."
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