Latest news with #WorldWinterGames
Belfast Telegraph
21 hours ago
- Sport
- Belfast Telegraph
Craigavon ski club volunteers help Special Olympians strike gold in Turin
Athletes Lucy Best and Caolan McConville recently returned from the Special Olympics World Winter Games in Turin with two gold medals each for Team Ireland. Their journey to the podium began on Monday nights at Craigavon's Ski Ability club, where they trained alongside long-standing volunteers Jill Coulter-Sloan and Jane McDowell. The club, which caters for people with intellectual disabilities, has been running for nearly 30 years and was originally founded for Lucy, who as a child dreamed of skiing but had no suitable local facilities. Since then, Ski Ability has grown to include members aged between 8 and 53, opening the door to winter sports for dozens of athletes. Head Coach Jill Coulter-Sloan has been involved since day one said: 'To stand at the bottom of the slope in Turin and watch them win gold – I don't think I've ever been prouder,' she said. 'It's a privilege to be part of their journey.' Jane McDowell, another long-time volunteer, first came to the club with her children more than 15 years ago. 'Now, even though the kids are grown, we're all still here,' she said. 'It's not just a ski club, it's a family. You see the difference it makes in people's lives – the confidence, the friendships – it's incredible.' The club's past highlights include a silver medal win for 45-year-old skier Cyril Walker at the 2017 World Winter Games in Austria, where he was presented with his medal by Arnold Schwarzenegger. The success in Turin comes during Volunteers' Week, as Special Olympics Ulster encourages more people to get involved with their local clubs. Volunteers play a key role in helping children and adults with intellectual disabilities train, compete, and thrive.
CBC
26-03-2025
- Sport
- CBC
Calgary athletes bring home 10 medals from Special Olympics World Winter Games
They brought home three gold, one silver and six bronze medals from Turin, Italy Six athletes from the Calgary area are settling back home after the Special Olympics World Winter Games in Turin, Italy earlier this month — where they won a combined ten medals. That includes three gold, one silver and six bronze medals. The six special Olympians were among 90 athletes representing Team Canada in alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, figure skating, speed skating and snowshoeing at the Games. Cross country skier Sarah McCarthy, 41, was one of three local athletes who came home with a gold medal. She won gold in the 4x1K relay race with teammates Cory Beardy, John O'Neill and Marley Gayler. She also won bronze in the 2.5K free technique, as well as fourth place in the 1K free technique. "It felt really great to be on the podium," said McCarthy, who's been cross-country skiing for 23 years. "It was fun, Italy was nice, and the place where we were skiing was really amazing." 19-year-old alpine skier Maddie Cyr came home from her first trip abroad donning three ribbons — fourth place in slalom, sixth place in giant slalom and sixth place in super-G. "I was crying happy tears," said Cyr, who noted she dedicated her time on the hill to her mom who is currently in the hospital. "I know my mom is proud of me, even though she was back home and I was in Italy. She was cheering me on in the hospital." Jodi Flanagan with the Special Olympics Team Canada mission said the athletes worked extremely hard for their achievements — from daily training sessions to working with mental performance coaches. She said the medals are great, but their wins go beyond that. "So much of it was, how are they feeling? How are they succeeding in travelling to another country? How are they succeeding being away from their families and from their usual routines for this length of time?" The other athletes from the Calgary area who competed in the World Winter Games are Susan Miko, Elouise Stewart, Jennifer Riddell and Brett Garth. Altogether, Special Olympics Team Canada brought home 116 medals — 39 gold, 35 silver and 42 bronze.
BBC News
23-03-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Norwich skier with autism wins gold in Special Olympics slalom
A skier who felt there was nothing for her in life until she discovered the thrill of the slopes said she was "super surprised" to win gold for Great Britain at the Special Lamb, from Norwich, came first in her division in the advanced giant slalom at the World Winter Games in Turin earlier this 26-year-old, who has autism, triumphed over 36 athletes from North America and Europe to qualify for the trained on a dry ski slope and in the gym in famously flat Norfolk. "I had a teary eye moment, because I wasn't expecting it, competing against the bigger countries - I was really proud bringing it home," she said. The advanced slalom involves skiing through a set of gates as fast as possible, with Lamb finishing three seconds ahead of her closest competitors, from Belgium and also won a bronze medal in the slalom during the games, held between 8 and 15 March."I've come from Norfolk, which has a dry slope, and going abroad competing against athletes who have mountains and snow - which I'd love to train on - and then get gold is a nice, proud moment," she discovered skiing aged 17 when the sport simply "clicked" during a family holiday, and went on to train at Norfolk Snowsports Club in Trowse, near Norwich."I felt like I found that purpose in life," she explained."To pursue that, and suddenly everyone was looking up to me [as a competitor], it felt a very nice moment, to feel I belonged." Speaking of her autism, Lamb said she was pleased other athletes had opened up about their diagnoses and raised awareness of footballer Lucy Bronze called it her "superpower", US tennis player Jenson Brooksby said sport was a release, and former Olympic rower for Great Britain, Caragh McMurtry has educated sporting bodies about welcoming environments."I like to shine the light on people with autism because we often get neglected in life, and think there is nothing there for us," she continued."That's how I felt - then I found skiing."Asked what comes after her victory, Lamb said she was happy to embrace any challenge."Now I know I can get gold, I know I can push myself further." Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
BBC News
22-03-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Special Olympics: McConville and Best triumph at World Winter Games
Northern Ireland - no snow, no piste, no the ethos of double gold medallists Caolán McConville and Lucy Best who returned home this week after competing for Team Ireland at the Special Olympics World Winter Games in topping the podium in the giant slalom final, they also dominated the Super G event, with Caolán securing gold in the advanced division with a time of 33.10 seconds and Lucy claiming victory in the novice division at 41.39 from more than 100 countries competed in eight sports through the Piedmont region of Italy in the first World Winter Games since 2017. Caolán, 21, from Aghagallon in County Antrim, made history by becoming the first athlete to compete for Team Ireland in the advanced division in alpine skiing, having originally been entered in the intermediate section. "The second I heard I was in advanced I wasn't worried, but I was more doubtful of winning because I wasn't really trained for advanced, so coming out with two golds was definitely unexpected but definitely welcomed."Caolán's Dad Peadar said he wasn't in the least bit shocked that he won."I knew the confidence was there, I knew he was in control and I knew he had it in the bag," he said. 'We train on the artificial slopes of Craigavon and Kilternan' Describing his success as a "huge achievement" for Team Ireland, Caolán explained how training in Ireland had its challenges but also benefits. "We train on the wee artificial slopes of Craigavon and Kilternan, he artificial slopes are "definitely not the best place to train" but they provide "more training time" with the flexibility of year-round access. Lucy Best, 33, from Ballinderry, has been involved with Special Olympics Ireland for more than ten years, having previously competed at the World Winter Games in South Korea in county Antrim athlete won two gold and one bronze medal in Italy."I never expected to win anything, but I was so happy when I won the medals. "When my name got called out I was just so impressed and happy that I nearly burst out in tears," she said. 'Lambing season on hold' Lucy balances ski commitments with working on the family farm, where this year's spring lambing has been carefully planned. Lucy's mum Jo said: "Once Lucy was selected last year we realised that [the Games] were prime, bang in the middle of our lambing time, so we held the rams back for three weeks in October."She added that, since returning home on Sunday, "the sheep have gone crazy" with 70-80 lambs born in the last few said being part of the Special Olympics Ireland team has been hugely beneficial for Lucy."People with special needs don't always have an awful lot to look forward to. "She's really had a focus and now she's been so successful she's beaming with confidence," she said. 'Relax and enjoy it' Having experienced success at the highest level in Turin, Lucy and Caolán have no plans to retire just yet. Lucy said: "I'm just going to relax and enjoy it for a while."I'll go back into training slowly and hopefully get picked for the next Games, but I also want to give others a chance," she said: "I'm going to keep at it. I'm going to train for the next one and not quit until I'm 50 years old!"Switzerland is set to host the Special Olympics World Winter Games in 2029.
CBC
21-03-2025
- Sport
- CBC
Shamattawa First Nation teen wins gold at Special Olympics World Winter Games
A gold medal at the 2025 Special Olympics World Winter Games for 15-year-old Cory Beardy had friends, family and supporters cheering last week. Beardy, a cross-country skier from Shamattawa First Nation who lives in Thompson, Man., won gold for Canada in the 4x1K relay - free technique, with teammates John O'Neil, Sarah McCarthy and Marley Gayler. He took part in multiple cross country skiing events during the games, including a fifth place finish in the 500-metre classic race and a fourth place finish in the 1K classic race. Beardy's coach Marlene Enberg was thrilled with his results. "Just a smidgen off of the medals in those two races!" Enberg said. Over 1,500 athletes converged in Turin, Italy to compete in eight sports March 8-15. In 2023, Beardy competed at the Special Olympics Manitoba Winter Games in Winnipeg and was one of two Manitoba cross-country skiers selected to advance to the 2024 Special Olympics Canada Winter Games in Calgary. Beardy has been training four to five times a week for the World Winter Games since qualifying for Team Canada after the Calgary competition. In a post on Facebook, the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs said Beardy's resilience, determination and passion was an inspiration to all young athletes across the 63 First Nations it represents. R.D. Parker Collegiate vice-principal Jeff Paradis, who also works with Beardy as a coach, praised his work ethic. "He's like the Energizer bunny," Paradis said. "Whenever I was out there with him, we would take breaks with some of the other kids and just relax and talk. Cory would be out there doing one, two, three, four more laps around the track. So, yeah, he's definitely a great athlete." Beardy plans to train for the 2029 Special Olympics World Winter Games that will be held in Chur-Graubünden, Switzerland. But for now, Beardy is a 2025 Special Olympics World Winter Games gold medallist. "I said, 'hey, how about next week, like Monday, think you can bring them in,'" Paradis told Beardy ahead of the school's spirit week festivities during the final week of March. "And he said, yeah, that'd be cool."
