Irish team make mark

OLYMPIC Council of Ireland Chief Executive Stephen Martin has described Irish performances at the Vancouver Games as ‘a success.’

Six athletes qualified in four disciplines and Martin believes their displays have helped raise the profile of alpine sports in this country. The high points were the performance of the women’s bobsleigh team of Aoife Hoey and Claire Bergin who finished 17th while Pat Shannon was 25th in the skeleton bob.

Shane O’Connor came home 45th in the slalom, Kirsty McGarry was 50th in the giant slalom, and cross country skier PJ Barron recorded a 91st in his first Olympic Games.

Martin said: “For a non Alpine nation, the number of athletes qualified, and their performances subsequently have been a success.

“All the performances were great especially Aoife and Claire in the bobsleigh and Pat in the skeleton. It is a really nice thing to say that you are in the top 25 in the world. Shane (O’Connor) and Kirsty (McGarry) finished in the top half of their fields while PJ (Barron) learned hugely from competing in his first Olympic Games.”