Former Westmeath U-21 footballer, whose football career was cut short by an accident wins World Para-cycling medal.
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Athlone athlete Mark Rohan secured Ireland's first ever Para-cycling World Championship Gold Medal when winning the H1 Handcycling Road Race in Baie-Comeau, Canada on Saturday.
Riding a very tactical race, Rohan pulled away from the rest of the field in the first lap with the previous World Champion Austrian rider Wolfgang Schattauer.
In the second lap they were joined by the Israeli rider Yakof Lion and it was clear that these three would share out the medals.
On the final climb Rohan and Schattauer increased the pressure to drop the Israeli rider and leave it a two-cat race for the gold medal.
With just 500 metres to go Rohan attacked from behind to overtake Schattauer and held him off in a thrilling finish to win by just two seconds and take the gold for Ireland.
I know Mark from playing a bit of soccer with Ballinahown and he is an extremely genuine and likeable guy who was always likely to succeed at whatever he turned his attention to. I hadn't actually heard that he had moved on from the basketball but it's no surprise that he's conquered the world at another discipline.
Congratulations to him, absolutely delighted for the lad! :)
Have also had the pleasure of knowing Mark although it's been a few years since I've seen him. Very humble fella and his positive outlook on everything would put you to shame. It was basketball and tennis he was at in those days but you just knew he could pick anything up and excel at it.
Congratulations Mark.
Fair play to him surely. What and when was the accident that happened him?
It was a motorbike accident. IIRC he would have been in his late teens / early twenties at the time.
One of the soundest men ya'll ever meet and delighted to see him doing so well.
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