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Olympians
By Ben Watson
Three west Auckland special Olympians are on top of the world after winning gold at the 2007 World Summer Games in China.
Tenpin bowlers Reuben Brown and Frank Coggan and swimmer Tim Fairhall all got gold medals during the games held in Shanghai earlier this month.
Reuben won gold in the pairs and the fours, and Frank won gold in the singles, pairs and an additional bronze in the pairs. Tim won his gold medal in the 50-metre butterfly event.
Tim and Reuben are residents in a complex run by the Te Atatu based organisation
A Supported Life.
The service offers lifestyle support in shared houses and flats for people
with intellectual disabilities.
Spokesman Shayne Quigley says staff are blown away by the success of
their athletes.
"I just think they are both absolutely gob-smackingly amazing,"
she says.
The organisation wanted to do something to show how proud they were and decided to hold a victory lap for the two medal winning athletes today at 5pm.
Tim and Reuben will be taken in a gold Audi convertible which will be decked out with New Zealand flags and will start their journey on Lincoln Rd.
The car will then travel down Great North Rd, Edmonton Rd and finish in School Rd where a party will be held for the pair.
Both medal winners worked extremely hard to prepare for the games and had to raise $10,000 each to get to China, Ms Quigley says.
Tim and Reuben say the opening ceremony and getting to meet other teams were the highlights of the event.
Photo courtesy: Western Leader