Volume 1 (1999/2000)
Issue 1 (March 1999)
Issue 2 (Nov. 1999)
Issue 3 (Dec. 1999)
Issue 4 (Feb. 2000)
Issue 5 (March 2000)
Issue 6 (April 2000)
Issue 7 (May 2000)

Volume 2 (2000/2001)
Issue 1 (Sept. 2000)
Issue 2 (Oct. 2000)
Issue 3 (Jan. 2001)
Issue 4 (March 2001)
Issue 5 (April 2001)
Issue 6 (May 2001)

Volume 3 (2001)
Issue 1 (Sept. 2001)
Issue 2 (Nov. 2001)

Categories
Sport: 1 2 3
Lifestyles: 1 2 3
Commentary: 1 2 3
Review: 1 2 3
Writing: 1 2 3
Event: 1 2 3

Give Me Five!

Stephen Doyle
Donahies Community School

Well done to Stephen Doyle, a Sixth Year student at the Donahies Community School, who won five gold medals in the Physically Challenged games held at Navan during the summer. It was a busy time for Stephen as he had only recently represented Ireland at the equivalent games in New York City. Stephen takes up the story himself.

Earlier this year I was informed by my parents that I had been nominated by the Irish Wheelchair Association to compete in the Physically Challenged games in New York. I was very excited about the news and I counted down the days to my departure. As luck would have it I arrived a little late because of road works, the traffic was so heavy that a person walking to the airport passed us several times!

In Departures there were a few tears from the younger participants because it would be the first time they would be away from their families for sixteen days. After take off one of the chaperones told us that Bono was on the plane and he would come to see us. He did so, but about ten minutes before we were preparing to land and he only met people in the first and second row of the plane near where we were, but a helper sent me a photocopy of his autograph after our trip. My parents phoned me in New York and told me that the whole of U2 was on our plane, as they saw them getting on after us. The drivers who brought us to Hofstra University where we were staying gave us a warm welcome.

In Hofstra, we were given a goody bag of sweets and flags etc. There were also crisps and soft drinks for us. All of us had to share bathrooms and sleep in rooms with hard beds and only a lamp for light. I wonder how the university students could live there full time.
I won five gold medals at the games, competing in a 40 m and 60 m race, an obstacle course and the precision throw. I reckon that I was competing in a class lower than I usually do because of the fact that I am only getting into sports again after spinal surgery.
At the opening and closing of the games the American National anthem, the anthem of the games (including sign language) was performed as was the Pledge of Allegiance. We had little time to acclimatise to the heat before the games but that didn't stop us from doing really well. There were twenty-one athletes from Ireland and we won a hundred and forty one medals!

Sadly, there was little mixing between the Irish and American athletes at barbecues and so on. During our stay we each received $175 and visited many places. We spent a day with the NYPD, a day at the beach with the FBI, a trip to the Irish Consulate (equivalent to the Mansion House), The Bronx Zoo and a New York Mets baseball game. On our last day there was a lot of crying at the airport as we had got on so well together.

A few weeks later there were counterpart games in Navan. By comparison to the New York games this was a much smaller event. Again I won five gold medals in these games competing in a 40 m and 60 m race, a club throw, precision throw and an obstacle course against the clock. That day I was told by one of the chaperones that one of the athletes sadly died just two days after arriving home. He had been terminally ill and it was his last wish to go to America.

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