Paralympics joy as athlete adds bronze to his gold
Gabriel Shelly (39) picked up the second Olympic medal of his life when he won a bronze in the boccia (class BC1) at the Beijing Paralympics
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Wednesday September 10 2008
KILKENNY was last night toasting another remarkable success, with another sportsman from the county proving, like the hurlers, that class is permanent.
Gabriel Shelly (39) -- Gay to his friends -- picked up the second Olympic medal of his life when he won a bronze in the boccia class BC1 at the Beijing Paralympics yesterday morning.
This achievement is all the more remarkable as it comes eight years after his gold medal-winning performance at the 2000 Sydney Paralympics.
"I'm absolutely over the moon," said Gay, who is originally from Bagenalstown, Co Carlow, but has lived in Kilkenny for most of his life.
In a tense and partisan Fencing Hall in Olympic Park, Gay had not just to overcome the pressure of the medal play-off, but also to ignore a vociferous hometown crowd.
Yi Wang, his Chinese opponent, was very much the crowd favourite, but it didn't faze Gay, who shot out of the blocks into a 5-0 lead.
It was at this point the 100 or so Irish supporters, dressed in what is becoming near-essential leprechaun hats, could finally be heard over the home crowd.
Although Yi Wang got two scores at the start of the final leg, Gay responded with one of his own and saw out the match 6-2.
An overjoyed Shelly delightedly told the press that he was absolutely over the moon after winning the medal. He said the victory was all the more sweet as previously Yi Wang had knocked out Gay's close friend and fellow Irish competitor Padraic Moran (24), from Bray, in the very last shot of their quarter-final match.
He added that Padraic played a sizable part in his success.
"My team-mate Padraic helped me with the strategy. He gave me ideas about how to play him.
"He advised me to go long on him, so I did and it really worked. I felt strong mentally too."
The cerebral palsy sufferer, attending his fourth Olympics, is not finished in Beijing yet, as this morning, along with Moran and fellow team-mates Tom Leahy and Bobby Connolly, he take part in the mixed-team boccia event.
Team PRO John Fulham, who last night was sharing in Gay's success, explains how boccia is a game of skill and tactics.
"It's very similar to bowls -- you have a jack and six balls. The game is played over four ends and the objective is to get the ball closer to the jack than your opponent.
"When it comes down to the tactical and psychological work it is just not that simple. There is so much more that goes into it. Each individual practises for up to 30 hours a week and then they train with their coach Jackie Connolly on top of that." President McAleese also congratulated Gabriel Shelly on winning the bronze medal.
She said: "We are all extremely proud of Gabriel's fine achievement in winning bronze today in Beijing.
"This success is testament to Gabriel's tenacity and commitment to the pursuit of excellence in his discipline. I wish him and his team-mates continued success in the Games."
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- Colin Bartley
