Maltese athletes at Special Olympics win 27 medals

Have you ever tried bowling with a sash over your eyes? Sounds crazy, for how can one bowl without seeing where the ball is going?

Ritienne Pullicino, 17, of San Gwann does not cover her eyes. She is blind. But she has managed to win Malta a silver medal in bowling at the 2003 World Special Olympics held in Dublin last month.

As she cannot see, Ms Pullicino has to feel the direction the bowling ball is going from the angle she holds it at, and the grip!

She was one of 20 athletes representing Malta at the games, who together managed to win 27 medals - 11 gold, nine silver and seven bronze.

Like the Olympic Games, the Special Olympics are also held once every four years. More than 7,000 athletes from 156 countries competed in this year's games. There were 35,000 volunteers and 45,000 relatives and friends.

A total of 22 sport disciplines were represented. Malta was represented in four - bowling, swimming, gymnastics and athletics.

The games proper were opened on June 20 and continued until June 30. Training started on June 15 with each participating country being linked to a particular town in Ireland.

Malta was linked to and hosted by Thurles in the county of Tipperary and the Maltese contingent was lucky enough to meet Irish president Mary McAleese.

The opening session was attended by, among other delegates - Nelson Mandela, Mohammed Ali, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Unges Kennedy Shriver, the person who started the Special Olympics in Chicago 32 years ago.

Ms Kennedy Shriver delivered a short speech in which she emphasised equality and called for an improvement in the Irish law.

This was the first time that Malta has taken part in the World Games. It had previously taken part in European and national games. The next games are being held in China.

Paul Micallef, from the Special Olympics (Malta), said Special Olympics Malta was set up three-and-a-half years ago with the mission of giving sports therapy to the disabled, improving their health, strength and endurance while teaching them life and other basic skills.

Special Olympics (Malta) he said, accepted all children with learning disabilities aged from eight onwards. The organisation, which had around 150 members, can be contacted on tel. 2157 0326.