Hi °C | Lo °C 
Eleven years ago, promising GAA footballer Mark Rohan's life on the pitch was cut short by a road accident which left him in rehabilitation for six months.
Yesterday, he reached the height of sporting success when he won a gold medal in the Paralympics in London for handcycling.
The 31-year-old from Westmeath secured Ireland's sixth gold in yet another day of glory for the team at the London Games.
"I am delighted with my result, there was a lot of pressure on me to perform," he said.
Before his motorcycle accident in 2001, which left him paralysed from the chest down, Mr Rohan played under-21 football for Westmeath.
Following six months in rehabilitation, he returned to sport and represented Ireland at wheelchair basketball before focusing on handcycling in 2009.
His victory yesterday in the individual time trial resulted in plaudits from Transport and Sport Minister Leo Varadkar.
"I congratulate Mark on his great success today. This is another impressive performance by an athlete who has been competing and winning at the very highest level in recent years," Mr Varadkar said.
Mr Ring said his talent "knows no bounds".
And his was not the only success for Ireland.
Cyclist Catherine Walsh, along with her sighted pilot Fran Meehan, won bronze in the individual time trial, their second medal of these games.
Ms Walsh also previously won bronze as a track and field athlete in the pentathlon in Sydney in 2000. This is her sixth games.
Last Sunday, the pair came second in the individual pursuit final.
"We have a really strong team, and I think that's what has moved us on, we support each other, share our advice, and it means we all improve," Ms Meehan said.
James Brown and his sighted pilot Damien Shaw also took bronze in cycling during the men's individual time trial at Brand's Hatch.
The Irish medal haul from the Games now stands at 13 -- six gold, two silver and five bronze.
"We are riding a new bike, we opted for power rather than aerodynamics, and it really seems to have paid off," Mr Brown said.
It was an especially jubilant victory for the cyclist who narrowly missed out on a place on the podium last Thursday during the bronze medal ride-off in the individual pursuit.
Mr Brown, who is visually impaired, previously competed for Britain in both summer and winter Paralympic sports before he declared for Ireland. He won gold in the 800m and 1,500m in 1984.
The continued success of Irish athletes at the games has left Paralympics Ireland in a minor dilemma.
When an athlete wins a medal, they are then presented with a glass statue from the Irish team.
However, not anticipating the level of success, just 14 were ordered.
"We didn't order enough of these things," Paralympics Ireland chief executive Liam Harbison said earlier this week.
Elsewhere, Sean Baldwin, who is taking part in the shooting, came 19th in the 50m rifle qualifiers yesterday and did not progress to the final.
Also in cycling, Cathal Miller came 11th in the individual time trial. In athletics, Ailish Dunne came 12th in the shot put while Nadine Lattimore (left) came 18th.
See sport
