15th September 2009,

Aussies exit Deaflympics in Style

The Australian Deaflympic Games Team proudly exited the 2009 Taipei Deaflympic Games at the spectacular closing ceremony last night, drawing the curtain on a fantastic 12 days of competition.

The Australian team joined the other 3,000 Games athletes from 91 Countries in celebration as they were welcomed by dancing cheerleaders before the Ceremony kicked off with a pounding drumming display and Taiwanese Traditional Opera that created the cultural and spectacular visional impacts. The entertainment finished with the Hong Kong pop star Aaron Kwok who brought the perfect completion to the climax.

The ICSD flag was then lowered to symbolize the completion of the 2009 Deaflympics Games and the flag was handed over to the representatives of the 2013 Athens Deaflympics Games. "See you in Athens!", said Taipei Mayor Hau to conclude the 2009 Taipei Deaflympics.

Double Gold medallist Melinda Vernon was given the honour of being the Australian Flag bearer for the closing ceremony in recognition of her outstanding performances at the Games. Melinda has dominated the distance running events in her first Deaflympic Games and at only 23 years of age has a bright future ahead of her.  

The 2009 Taipei Deaflympic Games have been a stunning success with the Taipei Organising Committee staging a superbly run Games that can easily be compared to the Olympic Standard and they have set the benchmark for all future Games to follow. The athletes have also raised the bar with 91 new Games' records and 47 new World records. Russia headed the medal tally, taking away 29-gold, 41-silver and 28-bronze.

The Australian Team performed well and given the emphasis on youth in the team, the experience will be a great learning curve for many in their development. Our medal tally finished at 3 Gold, 2 silver and 1 bronze medals.

Melinda Vernon and Kelly Fong displayed their class and international experience to win gold, cyclist Reece-Emerson Van Beek confirmed his status as a fantastic performer on the big stage with Silver and Bronze and the tennis pair of Stephen Swann and Glen Flindell showed their experience and skill to take out a silver medal. Apart from the medal winners their were many personal bests and gutsy performances by the Australian team who at all times performed with great pride and effort.  

The Australian team was fantastically supported by Australian Chef de Mission David Peters, his assistant Gavin Balharrie and the entire Australian support staff. A big thank you goes to them all plus all the families and supporters who made the trip to Taipei.

Deaf Sports Australia congratulates all the Australian Deaflympic Team on a fantastic effort and thanks everyone in Australia who has cheered the team on.

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