A bronze medal-winning Paralympian from Stapleford waiting to board a flight said he was left in 'total disbelief' after being told the plane was leaving without him.
Matt Byrne, 44, of Hickings Lane, said he waited for a flight at Dubin Airport on June 3.
The former Great Britain basketball player required assistance to board and said he had to wait for all the other passengers to get on the plane first.
He said he got to the airport at 6.45pm and arrived at the gate "in plenty of time" to make the 8.50pm flight back to Birmingham.
However, as he got strapped into a vehicle to lift him to the aircraft before take off, he claimed he was told the plane was leaving.
Mr Byrne, who won was part of the GB basketball team which bronze in Athens and Beijing and finished fourth in London, said: "Ryanair's policy is to load anyone with issues on last. The priority boarders went, then the normal check-ins - all the passengers went to get on the coach to get taken to the aircraft.
"I get sorted out. I went downstairs with the OCS (special assistance) staff waiting for the ambulift - it was five to 10 minutes away.
"It was a busy day because it was a bank holiday.
"I got onto the ambulift and one of the OCS fellas said 'have you got a bag on board?' I said 'no, I've got hand luggage'.
"[He said] 'the pilot's refusing to take you, you are going to have to get the next fight'.
"I was shocked. I have travelled a fair bit in my time and I've never had that before."
He said it wasn't the fault of the OCS assistance staff and added he was left in "total disbelief".
He said "there was no reason given", adding: "I would have been on board within five minutes. I was already in the lift.
"If I had a bag on board, I would have been allowed on."
He waited for the next flight which he said should have taken off at 10.30pm but got delayed.
He didn't have to pay for the later flight and said he didn't get back home until the early hours of the morning.
Mr Byrne, who had been to Carlow, in the south-east of Ireland, for a friend's 50th birthday, added: "This is total discrimination. There's no other word for it. I want them to change the policies so this won't happen again."
He said he had been told Ryanair was investigating.
A Ryanair spokesman said: "Special assistance services at Dublin Airport are operated by OCS – at great expense to the airlines."
Nottinghamshire Live attempted to contact OCS but received no response.
