MEGAN RYAN NAMED AS TEAM IRELAND FLAGBEARER IN CLOSING CEREMONY OF THE EYOF IN VUOKATTI, FINLAND
Four Athletes to Compete in Multi-Sport Winter Event
Alpine Skier Megan Ryan will carry the flag for Team Ireland at the Opening Ceremony of the European Olympic Youth Festival (EYOF) in Vuokatti, Finland tonight, 20 March 2022, at 6pm Irish time. Ryan is one of four athletes across Alpine Skiing and Figure Skating who will compete as part of Team Ireland in the EYOF which runs from the 20-25 March. The EYOF is a multi-sport event aimed at athletes aged 14-18 years of age, that is held every two years and is run by the European Olympic Committees (EOC) under the patronage of the IOC.
Ryan, whose brother Matt competed in the previous edition of the EYOF in Sarajevo in 2019, is one of three athletes competing in the girl’s slalom, and who is based in the USA where she attends a ski academy. Speaking on her selection as flagbearer the 18-year-old said,
“I’m so honoured to be chosen as the flagbearer, I’ve never done anything like this. I’m super excited to get out there and hold the flag for everyone to see. I think it’s going to be incredible. As a team we didn’t know each other before this, but we have gotten really close really quickly, and it’s an awesome group of girls we have so I think it’s going to be amazing to walk out in front everyone.”
Chef de Mission for Team Ireland Linda O’Reilly is looking forward to the start of the winter event,
“This is a very important event because it is the first time that these athletes will be taking part in a multi-sport competition, so we are excited to get underway with the opening ceremony tonight. In these kind of events the athletes learn to come together as a team in what is basically a mini Olympics, so it’s great for them and also it serves as a very important development element in their sporting pathway. With Covid this event has been postponed twice already so it’s really great that we are all here together now with all the other nations. We have three girls in Alpine Skiing and for the first time a figure skater, all the athletes are rooting for each other and get on great!”
Alpine Skiing – Girl’s Slalom
Kailey Murphy – Lives in USA, father from Dublin. Her sister Elle competed in the EYOF in Sarajevo 2019.
Megan Ryan – Lives in USA, father from Dublin, mother from Roscommon. Her brother Matt competed in the EYOF in Sarajevo 2019 and the Youth Olympics in Lausanne 2020. Her sister Emma was on the long list for Beijing 2022.
Charlotte Turner – Lives in USA, paternal grandparents from Galway and Cork
Figure Skating
Elizabeth Golding – Lives in Dubai, father from Dublin, grandmother lives in Bray
Originally known as the European Youth Olympic Days, the event has been running since 1993, with the summer edition occurring since 1991.
Schedule:
Sunday 20 March – 18:00 Irish time:
20:00 local time Opening Ceremony
Tuesday 22 March – from 08:00 Irish time:
10:00 local time – Alpine Skiing – Girls Slalom
Wednesday 23 March – from 16:30 Irish time:
18:30 local time – Figure Skating – Girls Short Programme
Thursday 24 March – from 16:00 Irish time:
18:00 local time – Figure Skating – Girls Free Skating
Friday 25 March:
Closing Ceremony