Paralympic gold medalist mentors Ballinrobe school

Paralympic gold medalist mentors Ballinrobe school


Ciara Galvin

DOUBLE World and Paralympic Handcycling Gold Medalist Mark Rohan visited Ballinrobe Community School last Friday as part of Sky Sports Living for Sport project.
The school has signed up to the free initiative, which uses sport stars and skills to boost confidence, change behaviours, increase success and improve life skills of school students.
Rohan, who is the school’s athlete mentor, visited the school to launch the project, which will see a small group of students act as leaders to plan an event.
The school has chose to run a cycling event called ‘The 1,000 Mile Cycle Challenge’. The event, provisionally set for March 20, and involves each student pledging to cycle a certain number of miles. At the end of the challenge, the total miles covered will add up to 1,000 or more.
Rohan spoke to the Ballinrobe Community School’s 500 students and 55 staff about life before the car accident that left him paralysed from the chest down, and the role that sport plays in his life since.
Speaking to The Mayo News, the gold medalist explained that the students will plan the event over a six- to eight-week period using life skills they will pick up along the way.
“Halfway through the project I will come back and see how it’s going and do a practical workshop with them on those skills, and hopefully that will reenergise them again,” said Rohan.
Physical Education teacher Culan O’Meara explained that the school has already been awarded an Active School Flag by the Department of Education. The flags are given in recognition of schools that strive to achieve a physically active school community.
“We have a committee that organises lunchtime leagues and promotes extra-curricular [activities] already, so we just got some of those kids and recruited a few more that we thought would benefit from it and would be good role models for other kids,” explained the teacher.