63.5kg Dean Clancy has made it out of the European Games rounds of 32 and 16, and in to the Quarter Finals.
He took on Malik Hasanov of Azerbaijan in bout 4 in Ring A’s afternoon Session. This was a sparky bout from the get-go, with Dean giving height advantage to his opponent. Dean claimed the first round in a 4-1 split, and both boxers battled it out for the remaining rounds. The judges scored the bout 28:29, 28:29, 29:28, 29:28, 28: 29 to give Dean his second win of the tournament. He is now one bout away from a podium finish, and a place at the Paris Olympics. Dean is back in the ring on Wednesday against Italy’s Gianluigi Malanga.
Listen to Dean’s interview in full here
71kg Dean Walsh celebrated his 29th birthday today, but suffered heartbreak in the ring. He met Italy’s Salvatore Cavallaro (ITA) in bout 8 of Ring A’s evening session. Dean started out strongly, but sustained a nasal injury and a subsequent standing count in the first half of the first round. The ringside medic attended to the injury twice during the remainder of the bout. Dean battled through the injury, but every round was adjudged a split – and that was the final score: 30: 27, 28: 29, 29:28, 29: 28, 28: 29
Both Dean Clancy and Dean Walsh can be proud of their performances today. Dean Clancy is one of the youngest members of the team, and now has two European Games wins under his belt. He has shown his style, stamina and technical ability to great effect. Wednesday is a red letter day for him. He is ready. Dean Walsh was on the wrong side of a dreaded 3:2 split; I felt he had done more than enough to win the bout, despite a bleeding facial injury. He is a skilled and resilient boxer, and his time will come.
Head Coach, Zauri Antia
The European Games is an Olympic Qualification event. A total of 44 places at Paris 2024 are available at these Games. In all weights excepting 75kg, 51kg and 92kg, a semi-final finish will win qualification. In these three weights, a finals finish is required. 319 boxers, in all, are contesting the tournament.
Preliminaries, Day Four.
6 boxers contest their Last 16 bouts on Monday. First up is 54kg Jennifer Lehane, who meets Greece in bout 2 of Ring b’s afternoon session. 60kg Kellie Harrington contests her bout against Elida Kocharyan of Armenia in Ring A’s bout 3. 80kg Kelyn Cassidy vies for a quarter final place against GB’s Taylor Jay Bevan in Ring B’s bout 8, while 92kg Jack Marley makes his tournament debut in the final bout of the afternoon session in Ring A, against Vagkan Nanitzanian (GRE). 66kg Amy Broadhurst returns to the ring in the Ring A’s bout 6, Evening Session. She meets Latvia’s Beatrise Rozentale (LAT). Two bouts later, 51kg Sean Mari opens his account, against Salvador Molina of Spain.
Watch
Bouts will be streamed here
All draws for all Team Ireland boxers are here and all results and schedules are available here