Thousands gather to salute Paralympic heroes

There were scenes of pure joy in Ballinahown yesterday (Tuesday) evening as thousands flocked to the village to honour Paralympic heroes Mark Rohan and Damien Shaw.The atmosphere was electric in anticipation of the arrival of the athletes as Macey South entertained the crowd from a stage set up beside the community hall.Double gold winner Mark and bronze medallist Damien were greeted with cheers and roars from the crowd as they were led by Athlone Pipe Band from Ballinahown NS to the community hall in the centre of the village.The cheers were so loud that they almost drowned out the music of the pipe band, no mean feat! People stepped from the sides of the street to shake hands with Mark as he made his way through the village.The athletes were greeted on stage by MC for the evening, PJ Hoey, who encouraged the crowd to show their appreciation for Mark and Damien.Speakers at the event included Cathaoirleach of Westmeath County Council Cllr Johnny Penrose, Mayor of Athlone Cllr Jim Henson, Manager of the Irish Paracycling Team Denis Twomey, Irish Paracycling Team Coach Brian Nugent and Fr Aidan Ryan.Cathaoirleach of Westmeath County Council Johnny Penrose said it was a great privilege for him to welcome the crowd to the special homecoming event that paid tribute to Mark and Damien."After an emotionally charged couple of weeks in London, for both the athletes and supporters alike, Westmeath and indeed the whole of Ireland is proud to welcome back the athletes, who have represented their country with pride and outstanding performances!" Cllr Penrose said."Westmeath says thank you to Mark Rohan and Damien Shaw for their outstanding performances at the London Paralympics and we will savour the excitement and cherish the memories of London 2012 for many years to come," he added.Mayor of Athlone Jim Henson congratulated Mark and Damien on their achievements and said of Mark: "In Athlone we almost claim Mark as one of our own. Mark has had an incredible sporting career to date."Local people were delighted to be part of the historic and unique occasion.Dessie Hennelly said: "To be caught up in something this unique is fantastic. What a guy, he's an inspiration to us all."Deirdre Keena travelled from Athlone with her husband Thomas and children Doireann and Senan for the homecoming celebration and said: "There is a brilliant atmosphere. The community really got behind him. It's great for the kids. I was in the school on Friday and they will never forget that. It's a very close knit community."Giselle Foley from Esker, Ballinahown, said the whole community had congregated in the school on Friday to listen to commentary on Mark's race on a mobile phone."The whole community is still talking about it. Everyone is so proud of him," she said, adding that the organisation that went into the homecoming celebration showed the community spirit of the area.Gerard Tiernan from Coosan said Mark was inspirational and said the event was all about the community coming together."Mark brought everyone together, old friends and new friends," he said.Seán Leydon said: "It is unique to get two gold medals in one small parish like this. It is a great achievement."Stephen Duffy from Kilgarvin said he wouldn't miss an occasion like this and he knew the Rohan family well. Philomena Kelly, from Clonfanlough, who was at Dublin Airport on Monday night to greet Mark and his family said the atmosphere was brilliant most evenings. "We're expecting a long week of celebrations and he deserves every bit of it," she said.The event was just getting under way as the Westmeath Independent went to print last night.