WEST Belfast teenager Eamon Montgomery has done his family proud after coming in sixth place for Ireland in the Senior World Cup Gymnastics Championships in Doha for the floor discipline.
The young athlete secured sixth place along with his teammate Adam Steele who came seventh and Rhys McClenaghan who secured second place on the pommel horse.
It was a huge achievement and Eamon’s uncle Patrick Tumelty expressed his pride at the results, citing how hard Eamon had worked in the sport.
“Eamon has shown tremendous dedication,” he said.
“It’s not a sport which is often readily available to working-class people, and Eamon has thrived off the support of his family.”
Eamon is currently based down in Abbotstown, Dublin where he trains on a daily basis with the other elite athletes on Ireland’s squad.
With this achievement, it now means that Eamon and his two other teammates have qualified and secured their first points for the circuit which will also see them compete for Ireland at the Cairo World Cup in Egypt and the Baku World Cup in Azerbaijan.
Eamon’s father Eamon Farrelly spoke of his pride in his son’s achievements and the many years of hard work and training he has put in to come so far.
“It’s a massive achievement for him,” he said.
“Coming sixth means he’s onto the world circuit now.
“It all began when we took him to Lisburn swimming pool and walked into the gymnastics class by accident. He was glued to watching them do gymnastics. They told us it was a two year waiting list, so we put his name down, and they got in touch a year and half later and things just took off from there, and he’s been doing it since about the age of six.
“I made him the stuff he needed, like a hobby horse to practice on because I’m a joiner by trade.
“The equipment needed is really expensive, so I’ve been really happy to help when I can, and it’s great to see all the hard work paying off, he’s up there with the big boys now.”
Speaking on the upcoming competitions in Cairo and Baku, Eamon Sr added:
“Gymnastics is his whole life, he’s always training, training, training, about 6-8 hours every day. He’s done his A-levels and now he’s taking a course with the Open University while he trains.
“We’re all so proud of him, and we’d also like to give a big thanks to his coach Conor McGovern from the Salto Club in Lisburn for all his work helping Eamon.”
