Special Olympics team going for gold in Athens games

THE IRISH Special Olympics team flew out to Athens yesterday morning with high hopes of surpassing their impressive medal haul of four years ago.

Ireland is sending a team of 126 athletes, along with 49 coaches and official delegates, to the games which get under way on Saturday in the Olympic Stadium.

The Special Olympics were hosted in Ireland in 2003 and in Shanghai four years ago.

The mood of the participants was summed up in a banner at Dublin airport yesterday held by Lisa Maher from Cork reflecting the famous Barack Obama slogan, “Yes we can”.

President Mary McAleese wished all the competitors well and said many had put a “phenomenal amount of time” into preparation for the event.

For the first few days Team Ireland will stay on the island of Rhodes where they will be part of the Special Olympics host town programme, giving them the opportunity to relax after their journey and acclimatise to their new surroundings.

The first few days will involve divisioning, that is the grouping of athletes so they will compete with athletes of similar ability.

The Irish team is competing in aquatics, athletics, badminton, bocce, bowling, equestrian, football, golf, artistic and rhythmic gymnastics, kayaking, basketball and table tennis.

There are three football teams and two basketball teams.

Ireland is the only country to send volunteers to the games – 200 people have volunteered and will be assigned roles by the organising committee.

Ireland won 187 medals in Shanghai in 2007 – 61 gold, 51 silver and 75 bronze. It has the 10th largest delegation out of the 185 nations competing.

The proportionately high representation is down to the legacy of the 2003 games which put in place an infrastructure for people with special needs to compete in various events.

The oldest person from Ireland taking part is Mary Quigley (69) from Carlow who will be in the bowls competition. The youngest competitor is Fergal Gregory (12) from Crossmaglen, Co Armagh, who will be competing in the swimming events.