Remarks by President McAleese at a Garden Party to Celebrate the Success of the Special Olympics
Remarks by President McAleese at a Garden Party to Celebrate the Success of the Special Olympics World Summer Games
Dia dhíbh a chairde. Fáilte go léir go dtí h-Áras an Uachtaráin inniu.
You are all very welcome to the Áras for this celebration of the success of the Special Olympics World Summer Games. What a fantastic showcase it was of the talent and determination of the world’s special athletes, the faith and skill of their coaches and the goodness of the Irish people. So many thousands of people made the Games a time of brilliant, happy memories and I wish we could have them all here. Regrettably it is not possible. But in this gathering are representatives of all the people who gave us the Games and made them the best Special Olympic games ever held - athletes, coaches, sponsors, volunteers, organisers, politicians, fundraisers, entertainers, host towns, host families, supporters and well-wishers. Whether your role was big or small is of no importance - what is important is that you pitched in to the island wide partnership which not only made the Games a resounding success but which introduced our country to the wonderful gifts and talents of our own special athletes and their comrades all around the globe. The athletes brought more than their sporting skill, they brought their unique talent for friendship, for smiles, for good humour and generosity. Our Irish athletes did their country proud in every way as sportsmen and women and as terrific hosts.
Behind them, urging them on was an army of unsung heroes who have all gone quietly back to their homes and workplaces. They did what they did for the sake of the Games, for the sake of our special athletes and for the sake of this island. They did nothing with any thought of thanks or of reward and I know from talking to them that they believe they got infinitely more in terms of fulfilment and joy from the games than they gave. Still it is important to be grateful and to acknowledge the debt this island owes to the people who transformed the Special Olympics into the best global advertisement we have ever had and the best education in the courage of our special brothers and sisters. What we saw before and during the Games was this island at its very best and our hope has to be that the massive energy it generated will survive and grow bringing a new era of focus on ability for those with disability. Already things have moved on with radical new legislation and additional resources for disability services recently announced by government so the spirit of the Games is already spreading far beyond the spectacular closing ceremony in Croke Park. Most reassuring of all though was the visible evidence that we are a caring, kind and generous people with a real gift for making the stranger welcome. Even the weather did not let us down and it is incredible to think so many thousands of visitors left our shores wondering why they had brought clothes for a cold and wet climate!!!
Many of those visitors and the ambassadors of their countries have told me how overwhelmed they were by the Irish welcome - one Welsh family came for the Opening Ceremony intending to stay only for the first day of events to watch their son compete in badminton. They were so enraptured by the welcome that they took the ferry to Wales drove the 200 miles home, organised a minder for the dog, turned the car around and headed back to Ireland. All those stories lift our hearts and make us proud - they are all gifts created by your work, your goodness.
Many of you were exhausted at the end of it all so Martin and I very much hope you will relax this afternoon, enjoy the Áras and its grounds, the entertainment, the craic, the conversation and the cuisine. On behalf of us all I thank the Grainne Brookfield Trio, the Four-Tune Cookies, the Kilkenny Gospel Choir, Paul Kennedy and our MC Eugene Downes, the members of the Civil Defence who are on duty and of course the staff here at Aras who have themselves achieved a fair level of fitness with all the running around they had to do to make everything just right for today.
Enjoy the afternoon.
Go raibh maith agaibh go léir