Jackie enjoys bird’s eye view of Olympic ceremony

JACKIE McWilliams had a bird’s-eye view of the spectacular Olympic Games ceremony - and the Ballymena hockey legend admitted that she was thrilled with what she saw.

The former Olympic bronze medallist was part of the 80,000-strong crowd which packed into the Olympic Stadium for the eye-catching curtain-raiser to the Games.

Jackie had been invited, along with the rest of the bronze medal-winning Great Britain hockey team from the Barcelona Olympics in 1992, by the British Olympic Association.

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“As it turned out, 14 of the 16 squad members attended and it was lovely to catch up with them again.

“We went for a bite to eat before making our way to the stadium and inside, the atmosphere was fantastic.

“The noise inside the stadium was incredible - not to the point where you couldn’t bear it but just at a level where it made the hairs on the back of your neck stand on end.

“The ceremony itself was fantastic and it brought back some great memories of 20 years ago.

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“I think the fact that it’s a ‘home’ Olympic Games has meant that people are much more in tune with what is going on - even people who have no great interest in sport could probably tell you the names of people who have won gold medals for Britain.

“There maybe isn’t the same feeling of involvement when the Games take place overseas.”

As for Jackie’s own achievements, despite a glittering career, the bronze medal remains very much top of the list.

“Nothing else even comes close,” she admits with a smile.

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