Ireland arrived in Minsk in the early hours of this morning ahead of the opening bell for the European Games at the Sports Palace in the Belarusian capital on Friday.

The draw for the tournament will be made at 8.30am (Irish time) tomorrow morning.

It is not clear whether seeding will be in operation at the 2nd edition of the Games since Baku 2015.

World and European Elite champions Kellie Harrington and Finland’s Mira Potkonen are in the mix in the lightweight class.

The Irish squad are scheduled to have their first training session later this afternoon in Minsk.

Rio Olympian Brendan Irvine had to withdraw from the Irish team for Belarus after picking up a foot injury.

Current European Union Elite champion Kurt Walker was edged out on a split decision by Russia’s eventual gold medallist Bakatovar Nazirov at the 2015 Games and told the Irish News that he believes the experience will stand to him.

“It was intimidating last time but a lot has changed since them. I’m experienced at this level now, said the Canal BC bantam.

“Very few people just go out and start winning stuff. I feel like I’ve served my time now and I’m going to reap the rewards, try and get more and more gold medals.

“If I could come back with a gold medal it would be massive.”

More than 4,000 athletes from 50 countries will compete across 200 events at the Games.

The competition runs from June 21 to 30 and will feature 15 sports, eight of which are part of the Tokyo 2020 qualification process.

Ireland has named a squad of 65 athletes from nine sports for Minsk.

 

Irish squad

Female

57kg Michaela Walsh (Monkstown A)

60kg Kellie Harrington (St Marys)

69kg Gráinne Walsh (Sparticus)

75kg Aoife O’Rourke (Castlerea)

Male

49kg Regan Buckley (St Teresas)

56kg Kurt Walker (Canal)

64kg James McGivern (St George’s)

69kg Kieran Molloy (Oughterard)

75kg Michael Nevin (Portlaoise)

91kg Tony Browne (St Michael’s Dublin)

91kg+ Dean Gardiner (Clonmel)

Team manager: Bernard Dunne

Coaches: Zaur Antia, John Conlan, Dmitry Dimitruk

 

Last Friday night (15th June) saw the Inaugural Liam Clarke Memorial Cup take place at The Ringside Club National Stadium with Esker Boxing Club taking on a Dublin XI featuring Juvenile to Elite boxers from Drimnagh BC, St Mary’s BC and St Catherine’s BC over 4 exhibition and 14 decision bouts.

A crowd of approximately 250 people were treated to a fantastic night of boxing with the Dublin Select coming out victorious on a 8-6 scoreline.

The night was held to celebrate one of the foremost Irish boxers of the 1960’s, three-time Irish Lightweight Champion Liam Clarke.

Liam’s sons and daughters were present on the night to accept an award from the IABA from Olympic Gold Medallist Michael Carruth and former World Cruiserweight Champion Glenn McCrory.

After the success of the show, Esker ABC have confirmed it will become an annual event. Best Home and Away boxers on the night were Esker ABC’s Charlie Manning and Drimnagh Boxing Club’s Jake McLoughlin respectively..

(Copy courtesy of Edward Griffin)

 

Sign up for the opportunity to spar a fistful of Irish Olympic boxers in support of Cystic Fibrosis Ireland.

The Michael Carruth Help Us Fight CF Challenge will be hosted at Dublin’s National Stadium on Saturday, June 29.

Register and you can step into the ring with Carruth, Ken Egan, Paddy Barnes, Andy Lee or John Joe Nevin and spar the Seoul 1988, Barcelona 1992, Athens 2004, Beijing 2008, London 2012 and Rio 2016 Olympians for one minute.

Between them, Carruth, Egan, Barnes, Lee and Nevin have boxed at 9 Olympiads, as Carruth and Nevin are two-time Olympians and Barnes represented Ireland at the last three Olympic Games.

To get involved you need to pay a registration fee of €50 via Eventbrite. Once registered you will receive sponsorship cards from CF Ireland and you can raise even more funds to support people living with CF

.You do not need to have any boxing experience but you have to be physically fit to take part. You need to provide your own gum shields while all other gear and advice will be provided. If you need more information contact Brendán on brendan@Cfireland.ie or call 01 4962 433

Doors open at 6pm on June 29.Adults €10 and €5 for U-16. A 50/50 Raffle will also take place on the night.

For more information contact Brendán on brendan@Cfireland.ie or call 01 4962 433

 

 

The Donegal County Boxing team, in conjunction with the Donegal County Council, travel to Boston for a major tournament at the T.N.T Corebox Arena on the Randolph Road on Thursday, July 27 next.

The Donegal punchers will face top athletes from the Boston Boxing Academy under the guidance of former Donegal boxer Mark Porter, a Buncrana native who has been residing in Boston for 30 years.

Fourteen Donegal boxers representing seven clubs will take part in the tournament.

Dunfanaghy BC pair Oisin Wallace and Odhran McGingley, Matthew Carlin and Josh McDonagh (Dunree BC), Pearse McBride and Bryan McNamee (Convoy BC), Adam McDaid and Daniel Campbell (St Bridget’s BC), Andrew Cunningham and Dean Doherty (Cardonagh BC), Patrick McShane and Cillian Boyce (Letterkenny BC) and Aaron McDaid and Liam McMonagle (Raphoe BC) will be between the ropes in New England.

The team manager for the trip is former Elite middleweight champion Paddy Doherty (St John Bosco BC) and the R&J is the popular James McCarron (Carrigart BC).

The coaches are Dominic McCafferty (Convoy BC), Gerard Keaveny (Raphoe BC), Eddie Harkin (Dunfanaghy BC), Johnny Mulhern (Cardonagh BC) and Rory McShane (Letterkenny BC).

The President of the Donegal County Board, Peter O’Donnell, will also travel for the six-day stay in the USA.

The Boston officials have organised many functions for the visitors including a reception with the Mayor of Boston, Martin J. Walsh whose ancestors hail from Connemara in Galway.

Peter O’Donnell is delighted to once again travel to the USA with a County squad.

“This is what boxing is all about as it is every young boxer’s dream to represent their County in far off America and for these young boxers there is no better form of education than travel, he said.

“We will continue to foster and support our sport as we develop young boys and girls into healthy, positive members of society through the sport of amateur boxing.

“Our sincere thanks to the Donegal County Council for their generous input into this trip of a lifetime for all these young boxers.”

(Copy courtesy of Peter O’Donnell)

 

 

Team Ireland leave for Minsk, Belarus today ahead of the start of the 2nd edition of the European Games this weekend.

Boxing begins Friday at the Sports Palace in the Belarusian capital.

The light-flyweights, heavyweights and super heavyweights are in action on Day 1 of the tournament.

Brendan Irvine, a silver medallist at the 2015 European Games, was forced to withdraw from the squad after picking up a foot injury in sparring in Ireland’s training camp with India, Italy, Romania, Netherlands and USA at the University of Ulster.

“I was sparring two Saturdays ago and that’s when it happened. I got an MRI on Tuesday and then the results came back and I was sent to see a foot specialist for a CT scan.

“The ball of my foot, every time I’m putting weight on it, it was just too sore. It felt like my foot was going to snap.”

“I was flying in the camp, everything was going so well, my hand was feeling good, I was sparring good… it’s just unfortunate.

“It was basically like a freak accident.”

Eleven Irish boxers – four female and seven male – will line out in Minsk.

World Elite champion and World No.1 lightweight Kellie Harrington is in the mix in the 60kg class.

The European Games will feature more than 4,000 athletes from 50 countries competing across 200 events.

The competition runs from June 21 to 30 and will feature 15 sports, eight of which are part of the Tokyo 2020 qualification process.

Ireland has named a squad of 65 athletes from nine sports to compete for Minsk.

(Irish squad at Dublin Airport this morning)

Team Ireland Boxing

Female

57kg Michaela Walsh Monkstown A)

60kg Kellie Harrington (St Marys)

69kg Gráinne Walsh (Sparticus)

75kg Aoife O’Rourke (Castlerea)

Male

49kg Regan Buckley (St Teresas)

56kg Kurt Walker (Canal)

64kg James McGivern (St George’s)

69kg Kieran Molloy (Oughterard)

75kg Michael Nevin (Portlaoise)

91kg Tony Browne (St Michael’s Dublin)

91kg+ Dean Gardiner (Clonmel)

Team manager: Bernard Dunne

Coaches: Zaur Antia, John Conlan, Dmitry Dimitruk