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| Tahir Ahmed blossomed under the love and support extended to the Special Olympics Pakistan delegation from its host town in Ireland, Balbriggan as the athletes prepared to compete in the 2003 Special Olympics World Summer Games. Ahmed was eager to have his photo taken behind the wheel of the Balbriggan bus that ferried the delegation around town. [Photo courtesy Special Olympics Pakistan] |
Five years ago, when Tahir Ahmed's family first signed him on with Special Olympics Pakistan, staff met a 12-year-old Down syndrome child with a cherubic face and innocent blue eyes, who seemed much younger than his years. That impression might have been because Ahmed did not speak, had a very shy and retiring personality, and seemed able only to respond independently to very basic instructions.
Ahmed was proposed as a candidate for bocce, at that time a relatively new addition to the sports offered by the Pakistan Program. He surprised everyone with the manner in which he took to the sport, which requires much more skill and agility than initially meets the eye. Just how much skill he acquired through hard work and practice can be gauged by his performance in the 2003 Special Olympics World Summer Games, where he walked away with three medals — a gold medal for team competition, and two silvers, for singles and doubles competition.
But it was not the medals he won that proved the true victory for Ahmed. It was the amazing personality that emerged from the shy 17-year-old through the course of his stay in Ireland.
When he arrived in Balbriggan, Ireland, Pakistan's host town, after a lengthy and somewhat grueling flight, he was teary, silent and refused to look anyone in the eye. Yet by the time he left Balbriggan four days later, Ahmed couldn't take the smile off his face, responded in kind to the love his hosts showered upon him so unstintingly. The change was demonstrated most dramatically when, during one of the disco nights organized at Sunshine House, where the Pakistani delegation was housed, this hitherto mute young man broke into song, and sang the lyrics to an entire number without faltering.
After that breakthrough, nothing daunted Ahmed when the Pakistan team traveled on to the Games — not the new surroundings of Dublin, nor the tension of competition. Ahmed continued vocalizing, gave spirited high-fives to his coaches and fellow athletes each time he made a good play, winked at whomever's eye he caught, and unreservedly hugged back whenever he was embraced.
“For us, a miracle had unfolded,” says Special Olympics Pakistan. “Amidst the many others that had been witnessed in Dublin through the games, Tahir's star certainly shone amongst the brightest.”
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