Dwarfs Strike Gold At French Games
Two British teenagers cleaned up at the fourth World Dwarf Games.
Dwarfs Strike Gold At French Games (This Is Local London)
LIFELONG friends triumphed at the fourth World Dwarf Games and brought home a world record 14 golds, five silvers and five bronze medals. Andrew Martin, 18, from Lewisham, and Ollie Clarke, 18, from Chislehurst, have known each other all their lives. They are delighted at their success in the games, which take place every four years and were held at Rambouillet, France.
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Mr Martin, who is a student, proved he is an all-rounder by scooping gold medals in the 4x60m relay, the 4x100m relay, football, volleyball, 25m and 50m freestyle swimming and the 4x25m swimming relay. He won also won silver medals for hockey, badminton and discus and bronze medals for the 100m and basketball.
Mr Clarke, of Woodside Avenue, who works at a supermarket, was also pleased with his medal haul. He said: “Over the years I have been comparing my times to the winning men and I have always come out quite well. “I thought I would win quite a few medals.”
Mr Clarke won gold in the 60m, the 100m, the 4x60m relay, the 4x100m relay, volleyball, football and badminton. He won also took home silver medals in javelin and hockey and bronze for table tennis, basketball and boccia, where players compete to land balls as close as possible to a jack. Mr Clarke also got the new world record for the 60m race, with a time of 9.39 seconds.
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Athletes must be shorter than 4ft 10in to be able to participate in the games.
Presumably, that rather limits the competition. Still, the diversity displayed is impressive; a single person winning medals for hockey, badminton, basketball, and swimming strikes me as rather unusual.
Of course, the fact that there is such a thing as the World Dwarf Games strikes me as rather unusual, too.
