JUNE 2009

Inishowen's Special Olympics

World Champion Bernard Dunne has been announced as one of the many special guests to attend the opening ceremony of The Special Olympics Ulster Games in O'Donnell Park Letterkenny on Friday at 7.30pm.

The major ceremony promises to be a truly memorable one with the Olympic torch expected to arrive in the stadium at around 8.30pm. The open-air event is completely free of charge.

Inishowen is sending a strong team to the event. Everyone in the peninsula wishes them well in their respective competitions.

Games Director Joanne Sweeney-Burke said Donegal should brace itself for Olympic mania. "We are so excited to be at this stage of planning and are eagerly awaiting the arrival of the 450 athletes to Letterkenny. A total of 700 volunteers have been recruited and almost half have been trained. I want to personally thank all our volunteers and sponsors without whom we could not have made this event a reality".

More than 400 athletes from across the nine countries will participate in the Games, while organisers are expecting a further 5,000 people to attend in the form of volunteers, coaches, spectators, VIP guests and family members.

The Games will run over three days, and the Aura Leisure Centre will host swimming and athletic competitions, the LYIT will host basketball games, while bowling action will take place at Arena 7.

Competitions also kick off at 12pm on Friday. On Saturday, they will run from 9.30pm to 6pm, and from 9.30am to 5pm on Sunday.

Back