Special Olympics: McConville and Best triumph at World Winter Games

Northern Ireland – no snow, no piste, no problem.

That’s the ethos of double gold medallists Caolán McConville and Lucy Best who returned home this week after competing for Team Ireland at the Special Olympics World Winter Games in Turin.

After topping the podium in the giant slalom final, they also dominated the Super G event, with Caolán securing gold in the advanced division with a time of 33.10 seconds and Lucy claiming victory in the novice division at 41.39 seconds.

Athletes from more than 100 countries competed in eight sports through the Piedmont region of Italy in the first World Winter Games since 2017.

Caolán, 21, from Aghagallon in County Antrim, made history by becoming the first athlete to compete for Team Ireland in the advanced division in alpine skiing, having originally been entered in the intermediate section.

“The second I heard I was in advanced I wasn’t worried, but I was more doubtful of winning because I wasn’t really trained for advanced, so coming out with two golds was definitely unexpected but definitely welcomed.”

Caolán’s Dad Peadar said he wasn’t in the least bit shocked that he won.

“I knew the confidence was there, I knew he was in control and I knew he had it in the bag,” he said.

Describing his success as a “huge achievement” for Team Ireland, Caolán explained how training in Ireland had its challenges but also benefits.

“We train on the wee artificial slopes of Craigavon and Kilternan, he said.

The artificial slopes are “definitely not the best place to train” but they provide “more training time” with the flexibility of year-round access.

Lucy Best, 33, from Ballinderry, has been involved with Special Olympics Ireland for more than ten years, having previously competed at the World Winter Games in South Korea in 2013.

The county Antrim athlete won two gold and one bronze medal in Italy.

“I never expected to win anything, but I was so happy when I won the medals.

“When my name got called out I was just so impressed and happy that I nearly burst out in tears,” she said.

Lucy balances ski commitments with working on the family farm, where this year’s spring lambing has been carefully planned.

Lucy’s mum Jo said: “Once Lucy was selected last year we realised that [the Games] were prime, bang in the middle of our lambing time, so we held the rams back for three weeks in October.”

She added that, since returning home on Sunday, “the sheep have gone crazy” with 70-80 lambs born in the last few days.

Jo said being part of the Special Olympics Ireland team has been hugely beneficial for Lucy.

“People with special needs don’t always have an awful lot to look forward to.

“She’s really had a focus and now she’s been so successful she’s beaming with confidence,” she said.

Having experienced success at the highest level in Turin, Lucy and Caolán have no plans to retire just yet.

Lucy said: “I’m just going to relax and enjoy it for a while.

“I’ll go back into training slowly and hopefully get picked for the next Games, but I also want to give others a chance,” she added.

Caolán said: “I’m going to keep at it. I’m going to train for the next one and not quit until I’m 50 years old!”

Switzerland is set to host the Special Olympics World Winter Games in 2029.