Four medals for Mayo athletes

GOLD MEDALLIST Mary Henry from Achill, who won the Equestrian event on Sunday last.

Mayo athletes win four medals at Olympics

Anton McNulty

MAYO’S medal haul in the Special Olympic World Games continued to rise over the weekend after Achill woman, Mary Henry, became the second Mayo athlete to win a gold medal in Shanghai.
Mary (42) from Belfarsad in Achill, won the gold medal in the Equestrian Working Trials on Saturday afternoon. This is Mary’s first time competing in the Olympics and news of her victory was met with joy and excitement in Achill and her home village of Belfarsad.
The eight Mayo athletes representing Ireland at the games have won four medals, two gold and two bronze. Kiltimagh’s Gary Diamond was the first Mayo athlete on the medal table when he won Ireland’s first gold medal in the Bocce singles last Thursday, at the Jiadang stadium in Shanghai. Gary secured a silver medal by defeating Amer M El Makdah from Lebanon by 12 points to six. He then went on to defeat his opponent by an impressive 12 points to one in the final. Gary had plenty of support with his parents, Mary and Joe, and two brothers Robbie and Paul, there to witness the great event.
The week got better for Kiltimagh and Mayo when Patricia McNicholas claimed the bronze medal in the Bocce singles event, on Sunday. Claremorris’s Deirdre Garvin also made it a games to remember for Mayo when she won the bronze medal in the female Bowling team event and narrowly missed out on her second medal when she came fourth in the female Bowling doubles on Sunday.
Mary Henry will be going for gold again when she competes in the dressage today (Tuesday), and a large number of Mary’s family, including her mother Annie, who went with her to China, will be cheering her on. As well as winning the gold medal, Mary’s second dream will come true when she is expected to return on a helicopter from Castlebar to Achill, where a hero’s welcome is expected to greet her on her triumphant return on Saturday.