Irish athletes won 16 medals on the final day of the Special Olympics World Games, bringing their total for the competition to 86.
Strong team performances in basketball and soccer, along with medals in athletics, equestrian, gymnastics, badminton, bocce, aquatics and table tennis, all contributed to Team Ireland taking home six gold, five silver and five bronze medals on the last day.
The Irish ladies basketball team delivered their best performance of the World Games to date, winning gold after beating Mexico 19-17.
Coach Vicki Ronning said: “I am immensely proud of the girls and all the hard work they put in over the last nine months. Despite the strong competition they proved themselves to be the best.”
Dublin player Sarah Byrne (18), said it was her “dream” to win a gold medal. “We went to sleep for a little while but towards the end our defence picked up and our shooting got a bit better,” she said.
Team Ireland’s 11-a-side footballers clinched a bronze medal at the Drake Stadium in UCLA, beating Iceland 5-4 on penalties.
After the win, head coach Paul Martyn said the team’s equaliser with three minutes to “ just epitomised the determination to bring home a medal. The respect the lads showed after the missed penalty was sportsmanship of the highest order.”
In athletics, the relay team - Aoife Beston (25), Donal O’Mahoney (42), Timothy Morahan (26)and James Meenan (20) - won silver. The mixed double badminton team of Amy Quinn (3) from Brah and Brian Hooper (33) from Gorey won gold.
Speaking on the final day, Team Ireland CEO Matt English said each and every team member put in an extraordinary performance. “From medals, ribbon placements and personal bests, this has been one of the most successful World Games ever,” he said.
Over the course of the Games, Irish athletes claimed a total of 26 gold, 29 silver and 31 bronze medals. There were also 31 personal bests and 43 placement ribbons.
Team Ireland will have their homecoming at Dublin Airport’s Terminal 2 on Tuesday morning, August 4th, at 8am.
