Ireland’s Seamus O’Connor came close to making the snowboard halfpipe final at the Winter Olympics in Sochi.
He posted a score of 54.00 in the first run in the semi-finals, enough for fourth overall at that stage with the top six advancing to the final.
But he couldn’t improve on his score in the second run and finished ninth out of 12 competitors.
He was distraught at the end knowing how close he had come to making the final.
“This is my first Olympics and I’m 16. I guess I should just be happy that I was able to do it fairly well. At the same time, I’m really quite upset that I’m not joining my friends in the final.”
To finish 15th overall in the competition is great credit to Seamus and his family, and his coach Sam Wilkinson.
Olympic Council of Ireland through Snowsports Ireland had the foresight to provide additional funding for his Olympic qualification two years out from Sochi with an Olympic Scholarship and have been very well rewarded.
