A FIREMAN is still pinching himself after experiencing a trip of a lifetime which saw him become a world champion.
Ian Finlay, from Little Sutton, won archery gold at the 2010 World Firefighter Games to realise an ambition he has held since he first picked up a bow and arrow six years ago.
But that was not the only reason why the 43-year-old returned from South Korea in dreamland.
Having also won a silver medal in the darts competition at the Daegu event, the red carpet was rolled out for Ian when he flew back to the UK as one of the passengers on the new Airbus A380 ‘superjumbo’ – the world’s largest and most luxurious aircraft – which touched down in Manchester for the first time.
“This really is the ultimate for me and to be honest I’m still in a bit of daze,” said Ian, who flew home from Seoul via Dubai. “Winning gold is something I’ve always wanted to achieve and I don’t think I’ll ever be able to top it.”
Reigning Cheshire indoor champion Ian, who works at Deeside Fire Station in Flintshire, took a two-point lead into the final day’s archery action but believed he had been pipped at the post by his Romanian rival.
“Although I knew it was close, I didn’t feel I had done enough to win,” said Ian, an archery bronze medallist at the 2008 World Firefighter Games in Liverpool.
“So it wasn’t until the organisers showed me the results that I knew I had won.”
Ian, a father of two, then swapped one set of arrows for another as he teamed up with a South African firefighter to finish second in the doubles darts.
“My team-mate was really down because he had missed out on winning a medal in his chosen event because he had injured his Achilles,” said Ian. “So I asked him to have a go at the darts and we finished second!”
Ian, a governor at Meadows Primary School and Whitby High School, fully immersed himself into South Korean culture during his seven days in Asia, so much so that – in a show of respect – he took the country’s national flag on to the podium with him to collect his archery prize.
But the former Ellesmere Port High School student was delighted to be reunited with his wife Paula and his two sons Daniel and Matthew, both of whom are now following in their father’s footsteps.
Matthew took his first archery lesson at the weekend while, on the day his dad was winning gold in Daegu, Daniel claimed his first Cheshire title.
Ian would like to thank MP Andrew Miller for securing funds from Urenco in Capenhurst plus Archery GB, Ellesmere Port and Neston Mayor Gareth Anderson and the Ellesmere Port and Neston Lions Club for their help.
