Team GB Tennis Players Net Doubles Medals At Special Olympics
Tuesday, 9th October 2007
The Special Olympics Team GB Tennis Squad of six players secured a fantastic full house of medals in doubles competition on Tuesday, winning Gold, Silver and Bronze medals at the Special Olympics World Summer Games in Shanghai, China.
Wirral's Peter Millar (Tranmere, Birkenhead) and Leicestershire's Thomas Styles (Melton Mowbray) combined to clinch Gold in their Men's Doubles event in Shanghai, where all the tennis players at the world's premier sporting event for athletes with a learning disability are playing in divisions against players of like tennis ability.
Having beaten their Chinese opponents in two short sets in their opening doubles match on Sunday Millar and Styles stormed their way to Gold on Tuesday, winning their second and final round robin group match against Chile's Daniel Sierra and Joaquin Fuentes 4-1, 4-0.
The victory brought 15-year-old Millar his second Gold medal of the week after he won his Men's Singles division on Monday after again remaining undefeated. Meanwhile, Styles has the chance of going for another Gold on Wednesday when he completes his Men's Singles division with a final decider against Salvatore Famao of Germany.
Also in the Men's Doubles Scotland's Stephen McEwan (East Kilbride) and Kevin Hogan (Glasgow) clinched a Bronze medal. After a narrow defeat in a deciding tie-break in their semi-final on Sunday McEwan and Hogan won their Bronze medal play-off on Tuesday against Egypt's Motaz Elkhwas and Alaa Salem 4-1 5-4 (5).
McEwan is assured of another medal to come when he plays Australia's Peter Kerin for Gold or Silver in his final Men's Singles match on Wednesday, while Hogan is also set to play-off for a Singles Bronze medal.
Tuesday's full house of tennis medals for Team GB was completed by Wales' Lucy Pethig (Gelli, Rhondda) and Leicestershire's Zara Jurenko (Muxloe), who won Silver in their Women's Doubles group.
Pethig and Jurenko beat China's Lu Han and Min Min Huang in straight sets in their opening doubles match on Sunday, but found their second Chinese opponents Yan An and Qinghua Lin to strong on Tuesday, Pethig and Jurenko losing out 1-4 2-4 in the play-off for Gold and Silver medals.
Pethig will now play off for Gold and Silver in her final Women's Singles match on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Tuesday's penultimate day of play for the Team GB tennis players also saw Jurenko triumphantly begin her quest for a Gold medal in her Women's Singles event. Jurenko defeated Woralak Boon Mee of Thailand 6-1 in her opening match and will now take on Karla Galan of El Salvador on Wednesday to decide the Gold and Silver medals.
Tuesday's doubles medals bring Team GB's total medal haul so far in the tennis events at the 12th Special Olympics World Summer Games to two Golds, one Silver and one Bronze medal, with another possible four Gold medals and one Bronze medal on offer on Wednesday.
The six Team GB tennis players and their coaches Lesley Whitehead and Geraint Richards are part of a Special Olympics Team GB delegation of 159 athletes and 50 coaches participating in the Special Olympics World Summer Games in Shanghai.
Team GB tennis players won a total of seven medals, including three golds, at the last Special Olympics World Summer Games in Dublin in 2003.