Deaf Mosaic exclusive interview covers on the star of American Gladiator Siren, Shelley Beattie, a professional female bodybuilder and actress.At the peak of her competitive career as a professional bodybuilder, Beattie reached the top three at the Ms. International and Ms. Olympia contests, the two most prestigious shows for female professional bodybuilders.
She was one of the few Deaf professional female bodybuilders in the world, making the cover of DeafLife magazine twice in the 1990s. After her retirement she joined the Grinder on America3's America's Cup team and managed to reach second place in both 1994 and 1995.
Shelley Ann Beattie was born in Orange County, California. At the age of three, Beattie suffered hearing loss from an aspirin overdose. Her peers' misunderstandings and lack of education about people who are Deaf led to trouble socializing. Since she could only understand her classmates if they were facing her, her classmates assumed she was mentally disadvantaged and rejected her. Beattie became a loner and used sports to deal with her frustrations and lack of social life. She also learned sign language and had several operations and speech therapy to improve her ability to communicate... Read more: Shelley Beattie Biography
