CENTRAL Athens may have been shut down by strikes yesterday, but the Irish Special Olympics team was in flying form, winning 20 medals – including five gold – at day three of the games in the Greek capital.
Team Ireland’s artistic gymnasts were the big winners of the day, with Alan Quinlan from Cappamore, Co Limerick, scooping one gold and five silver medals, John Michael Gannon from Cloghan, Co Offaly, taking two golds and two silvers, and Pauline Connell from Lisburn, Co Antrim, picking up two golds and three silvers.
The team got things rolling in the morning when Deirdre Gannon of Westport in Co Mayo and her team-mate Mary Quigley from Tullow, Co Carlow, took silver in the women’s doubles bowling.
At 69, Quigley is the most senior member of the Irish team in Athens.
Also picking up silver in a different category of the same event were Joyce Haughian from Warrenpoint, Co Down, and Deirdre Garvin from Claremorris in Co Mayo.
In the pool, Irish swimmers continued to build on the success of their team-mates in the first two days of the games.
Setting a new personal best in her race, Dubliner Lorraine O’Halloran scooped gold in the 100m freestyle, while Templeogue woman Mary Gavan won her second medal of the games, a silver in the 100m freestyle.
In equestrian events, the final Irish-bound medal of yesterday morning’s competition was clinched by Steven Yetman, who came third in dressage.
From Donaghadee in Co Down, Yetman was awarded his bronze medal by Charles Sheehan, Irish Ambassador to Greece.
Making the victories even sweeter for many of the day’s Irish medallists was the fact that it was their first time to represent their country on the international sporting stage.
In the first stage of one of the most competitive competitions, the Irish men’s five-a-side football team claimed a 2-0 victory over Cyprus.
Their female counterparts, however, were unlucky to be beaten 3-0 by Italy.
For the 200 Irish volunteers at the Athens games, the first 24 hours of a two-day general strike hampered them getting to their assigned sporting venues.
“Some weren’t able to get to their venues because it wasn’t safe for them to be travelling and taxi drivers wouldn’t go through the city centre,” said one volunteer, Bríd Keegan.
Team Ireland consists of 126 athletes, representing all 32 counties, and 49 coaches, making it the 10th largest delegation to this summer’s games.The games will run until Monday.