Special Olympics success for Athlone duo

Two Athlone women are celebrating gold medal success at the Special Olympics World Games in Abu Dhabi.

Sarah Kilmartin (22) and Shauna Stewart (23) were part of the winning Team Ireland basketball team who scooped gold on Tuesday, defeating an Indian squad called Bharat by 27 points to 15.

The victorious ladies team was made up of athletes from Antrim, Down, Dublin, Tyrone and Westmeath.

The 91-strong Team Ireland squad have been blazing a trail at the games in a variety of sports, with outstanding performances in athletics, badminton, basketball, bocce, bowling, equestrian, football, golf, gymnastics, kayaking, swimming and table tennis since the event began at the weekend.

After five days of competition (Tuesday) in the United Arab Emirates the Irish team has a massive haul of 60 medals.

 

See more on this story in next week's Westmeath Independent.