DEAF SPORTS Ireland Going for Gold at 21st Summer Deaflympics

Over 40 young Deaf athletes will be travelling to Taipei, Taiwan on Monday 31st August to compete in the Deaflympics, an Olympic sporting event for Deaf and hard of hearing people.

The Deaflympics is one of a number of events in the Olympic 'family' that includes the Paralympics and Special Olympics as well as the main summer and winter Olympics.

It is also the fastest-growing Olympic event. The 21st summer Deaflympics will run from 5th to 17th September and will have well over 4,000 athletes and officials from 85 countries taking part- a new record.

The 41-strong, all-island Irish team is the largest Irish team ever fielded for this event, and will be aiming for gold medals in a number of events, including swimming, water polo, football, badminton and athletics.

Ever since it first participated in the 1973 World Games for the Deaf (as the event was then called), Irish athletes have collected a total of 16 gold, 14 silver and 10 bronze medals at these games.

The team will be accompanied by officials from the Irish Deaf Sports Association (IDSA), which selected and fielded the 41 athletes for the competition.

To qualify for the games, athletes must have a hearing loss of at least 55 db in their "better ear". Hearing aid or external cochlear implants are not allowed to be used in competition, to place all athletes on the same level.

The other ways in which the games vary from 'hearing' competitions are the manner in which they are officiated. The football referees waves a flag instead of blowing a whistle while on the track or swimming pool and the races are started by using a light flash, instead of a starter pistol.

Although the Deaflympics is officially sanctioned by the International Olympic Committee, and ranks as the second oldest Olympic event, the games do not receive any financial support, only for programs and services which means funding must be raised at national level to send teams to the competition.

The IDSA has been fortunate to receive annual funding from the Irish Sports Council and FAI to fund training sessions for the Irish team throughout the year.

IDSA President Laurence Coogan said: "The Irish National team consists of 62 athletes and officials. We have a strong team this year, with many of our members competing regularly in both Deaf and hearing competitions. They are very confident and well-prepared to represent the whole island of Ireland."

There will be extensive coverage of the games, including daily results, reports, interviews on www.irishdeafsports.net and on www.irishsportscouncil.ie.

There will be opportunities to meet and talk to members of the Irish team and the IDSA with an Irish Sign Language Interpreter present at Dublin Airport before 7am on Monday 31st, August, as they prepare to depart for Taiwan.