Double the talent to tee off
Twins Sarah and Trudy Hyland are gearing up to represent Cork in golf at the Special Olympics in Berlin later this month.
The sisters from College Road in Cork city are veterans of the games, with Sarah competing for 30 years and Trudy involved for 25.
Their mother Maeve said that although they come from a sporty family and have played a variety of sports, once they got the golf bug there was no turning back.
She said: “They won a skills competition in 2000, and then they were hooked on golf.”
Their next achievement was the Special Olympics hosted by Ireland where Sarah took the top spot in her sport.
“The World Games took place in Dublin in 2003 and Sarah won a gold medal. She was delighted, so then Trudy joined in,” Maeve said.
Maeve said the upcoming Olympics in Germany will be extra special for the siblings, as they will compete together: “Trudy went to the Games in LA in 2015 on her own but they are very close, and she missed Sarah a lot. So, it’s wonderful that both of them are going to the summer games in Berlin this month.”
With Sarah playing a full 18 holes and Trudy playing 9, they won't directly compete against each other. However, according to Maeve, this doesn't dampen their competitive spirit.
“They are very competitive with each other, they know exactly how the other is playing and what score they are getting in each hole,” she said.
Maeve told the Cork Independent Trudy and Sarah feel enormous pride to be flying the tricolour at the Special Olympics: “They are delighted to be representing Ireland at the games. They wrote a speech and said how proud they are to represent their family, Cork Golf Club, Munster and Ireland at the games.”
Maeve admited that sometimes they get a little nervous about how they will get on, however, she reassures them.
“The most important thing is that they enjoy themselves and do the best they can. That’s what it’s all about,” she added.
She continued: “The Special Olympics is so important for the athletes. We go on outings, they form friendships, they go to the games and they travel, it really is a marvellous experience for them.”
Trudy and Sarah’s family, along with members of Cork Golf Club, will be making the trip to Berlin to cheer the twins on and Maeve said everybody is really looking forward to seeing them in action.
“All the family will be going out to watch them, it’s great to be going, and it’s lovely that both of them are competing, but I hope that won’t put pressure on them that we will all be there,” she concluded.
Their sporting heroes Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry have sponsored balls, tees and gear for the Irish Special Olympics Golf squad, which has 9 team members, 4 of which are from Munster.
The twins will fly out on Monday 12 June and stay with a host family in Dusseldorf for 4 days.
From there it’s onward to Berlin for the opening ceremony on Saturday 17 June. The competition will commence the following week, where Sarah and Trudy will showcase their golfing prowess on an international stage.