Taiwanese athletes get the Games go-ahead despite SARS-infected status

TAIWANESE athletes have been cleared to take part in the Special Olympics despite the country’s ongoing SARS-infected status.

Fri, 13 Jun, 2003 - 01:00

Aisling Casey and Micheal Brennan

The Department of Health confirmed yesterday the Taiwanese team will now be allowed to travel to the Games after accepting the authorities quarantine proposal for a stop-over in Thailand before travelling to Ireland.

This means that no countries are now banned from attending the Games. The Taiwanese authorities were determined to get permission to attend the Games after Hong Kong, which has also been battling with the virus, got the go ahead.

Hong Kong had presented a similar quarantine proposal to the Department. The team will travel to Thailand, a non-SARS affected area, for 10 days before travelling to the Games in Dublin. All athletes will be medically assessed by the Taiwan Department of Health before leaving for Thailand.

A Government spokesperson said: “The Department of Health and Children discussed this proposal with the Taiwanese authorities and has indicated that to them the proposal is acceptable.

Meanwhile, the Special Olympic Law Enforcement torch, which today arrives in Bangor, Co Down, will be carried by members of the PSNI and the gardaí in a historic first.

There have been many co-operative ventures between gardaí and the PSNI but this is believed to be the first time they have acted in an official capacity on both sides of the border.

The Garda runners include Superintendent Eddie Finucane from Clondalkin Garda Station who was involved with the 1988 Special Olympics torch run.

So far 650,000 has been raised for the Special Olympics by all the torch runs.

In total, more than 1,500 members of the Garda and the PSNI will accompany the Special Olympic’s torch in four teams, as it nears the end of a 15,000km journey from Athens.

It will tour through 130 communities before arriving in Dublin for the opening ceremony in Croke Park on June 21. The government is to pass a police co-operation bill through the Dáil allowing gardaí and PSNI members to serve in both forces.