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Last Updated: 2 Apr 2018 - 8:45:17 PM |
PARALYMPICS: SILVER LINING FOR CYCLING AS IRELAND WIN PARALYMPIC MEDAL
By Cycling Ireland
2 Sep 2012,
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Irish Tandem of Walsh and Meehan win Silver Medal at Paralympic Games
Winning the first medal that Ireland has ever won in cycling at an Olympic or Paralympic Games, the women’s tandem of Catherine Walsh and Fran Meehan finished in the silver medal position in the Women’s Individual B Pursuit in an Irish record time of 3.36.360.
With the previous World Record being 3.36.362, this time was World Record pace, but their New Zealand opponents went one further to take the gold. The New Zealand team qualified in a time of 3.31.530, knocking an incredible 5 seconds off the world record..
The Irish duo went out faster than they had this morning, on a bigger gear, and at the 1km mark were a mere 0.2 second down. However, the swift New Zealand pair, who have been focusing on this event also, raised their game. By the 2km mark this lead extended to 1.9 seconds, and at the finish there were three seconds between Ireland and the gold medal.
This was a formidable effort from the Irish tandem who were delighted with their performance.
Meehan, after the race said: “Woo... we went out and fought hard. We did the best we could, and got second , we did everything we wanted to do and we left it all on the track. We were a damn good second.”
Team Manager Denis Toomey said “the Irish girls were the only tandem to go faster in the final than in the qualifiers,” such is the determination of Walsh and Meehan.
Walsh said “the team had a couple of fourths, so it was hard during the week. We were able to finish off what we said we were going to do.”
Meehan said “in the qualifier we were lying fourth coming into the last two laps and we raised it, this epitomises the efforts of the whole team.”
Next up for the Irish Cycling Team is The Time Trials and Road Races in Brands Hatch starting next Wednesday.
THUMBNAIL PICTURES COURTESY OF SPORTS FILE - BRIAN LAWLESS
Wednesday 5th September:
Time Trials – Brands Hatch
10.30 – 13.00 Miller, Lynch, Smyth
14.30 – 17.30 Men’s and Women’s Tandems, Mark Rohan
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