Team Ireland claimed a gold, and a silver, in Yerevan, Armenia today, at the finals of the Men’s European Championships.
19 year old Dylan Eagleson, of St. Paul’s, Belfast, who claimed European U22 bronze this year, contested his bantamweight final against the more experienced Frenchman, Bilal Bennama. This was a pacey, testy final with a second round standing count for the Bangor boxer, who showed style, agility and bravery throughout the contest. The judges scored the out 5-0 in favour of Bennama
Olympic BC, Galway’s Gabriel Dossen met England’s Lewis Richardson the middleweight final, fresh from a bout deemed the best of the day in the semi-finals. Gabriel was dominant throughout the bout, contesting in an assured, mature manner against a strong and experienced opponent. The decision, 5-0, went to the Irishman.
Re-live the finals and medal ceremonies here
The 2022 Men’s European Championships has been an excellent tournament for Team Ireland, with half of the squad reaching the quarter final stage. Team Ireland Head Coach, Zauri Antia, speaking as Dylan and Gabriel won-through to today’s finals, said ““ I want to congratulate the club coaches of each and every Team Ireland boxer for their support and trust in preparation for the Men’s European Championships. All boxers have performed well and gained very valuable high-level experience. I also want to say thank you to the team here in Yerevan – Coaches Dmitrij Dmitruk and Damien Kennedy, our doctor, Jim Clover, performance analyst Alan Swanton and physiotherapist, Lorcan McGee.”
Dylan and Gabriel join and elite group of 14 Irish boxers who’ve won 21 European medals, between them, since 1939, beginning with James Ingle, at a championships held at the National Stadium. The list includes Aoife O’Rourke, Kurt Walker, Joe Ward (3), Michael Conlan, Katie Taylor (6), Jason Quigley, John Joe Nevin, Ray Moylette, Paddy Barnes, Paul Griffin, Maxie McCullough, Gearoid O’Colmain and Patrick Dowdall.
The team return to Ireland on Tuesday, landing at Terminal 1 in Dublin Airport, from Paris, at 22:40hrs.
Team Ireland:
48kg Ricky Nesbitt, Holy Family, Drogheda
51kg Sean Mari, Monkstown BC, Dublin
54kg Dylan Eagleson, St. Paul’s, Belfast
57kg Adam Hession, Monivea BC, Galway
60kg JP Hale, Star ABC, Belfast.
63.5kg Brandon McCarthy, St. Michael’s, Athy.
67kg Eugene McKeever, Holy Family, Drogheda
71kg Luke Maguire, Esker BC, Dublin
75kg Gabriel Dossen, Olympic, Galway.
92kg Jack Marley, Monkstown BC, Dublin
Coaches:
Zauri Antia
Dmitri Dmitruk
Damian Kennedy
Draw sheets for all Team Ireland boxers are here
Day One results are here
Day Two results are here
Day Three results are here
Day Four results are here
Quarter Final results are here
Semi Final results are here
