Kellie Harrington won Olympic gold after a stunning performance in Tokyo this morning.

The Dubliner came from behind to beat Brazil’s Beatriz Ferreira on a unanimous decision in today’s lightweight final at the Kokugikan Arena.

Ferreira, walking down the Irish champion, took the first round 3-2, courtesy of hooks and uppercuts with Harrington beginning the find her range near the end of the round.

But the second round was all about Harrington, with the 2018 World Elite champion holding her composure and getting her timing and range spot on to take the frame on all five cards.

Ferreira, the 2019 World gold medalist. continued chasing Harrington in the third but the new Olympic champion kept picking off her shots en route to a famous win after a masterclass in the second and third rounds.

Harrington now joins Michael Carruth and Katie Taylor as one of three Irish boxers to win Olympic gold.

Irish boxing will be taking home one gold and one bronze, courtesy of Aidan Walsh, from Tokyo.

Harrington, who won four fights on her way to gold, is the eight Irish boxer to reach an Olympic final and Irish boxing has now won 18 Olympic medals since 1952.

“It’s just fantastic. I can’t wait to get back home,” Harrington of the St Mary’s BC told RTÉ Sport.

“I’m absolutely exhausted to be honest. What a journey, it’s just fantastic.”

“There have been times in my career when people say the whole country is behind you. This time I really, really feel the whole country is behind me.”

“This is the stuff of dreams. Thank you to the people back home for all the support. It really means the world to me.”

Tokyo Olympics

July 24th

Last 32
57kg Kurt Walker (Ireland) beat Jose Quiles (Spain) 5-0

July 25th

Last 32
81kg Emmet Brennan (Ireland) lost to Dilshod Ruzmetov (Uzbekistan) 0-5

July 26th
Last 32

52kg Brendan Irvine (Ireland) lost to Carlo Paalam (Philippines) 1-4

Last 16
57kg Michaela Walsh (Ireland) lost to Irma Testa (Italy) 0-5

July 27th
Last 16

69kg Aidan Walsh (Ireland) beat Albert Menque (Cameroon) 5-0

July 28th

Last 16

75kg Aoife O’Rourke (Ireland) lost to Qian Li (China) 0-5
57kg Kurt Walker (Ireland) beat Mirazizbek Mitzakhalilov (Uzbekistan) 4-1

July 30th
Last 16

60hk Kellie Harrington (Ireland) beat Rebecca Nicoli (Italy) 5-0

Quarter-final
69kg Aidan Walsh (Ireland) beat Mervin Clair (Mauritius) 4-1

August 1st

Quarter-final

57kg Kurt Walker (Ireland) lost to Duke Ragan (USA) 2-3

Semi-final

69kg Aidan Walsh (Ireland) lost to Pat McCormack (Great Britain) (W/O)

(Walsh sustains an ankle injury)

August 3rd

Quarter-final

60kg Kellie Harrington (Ireland) beat Imane Khelif (Algeria) 5-0

August 5th

Semi-final

60kg Kellie Harrington (Ireland) beat Sudaporn Sessondee (Thailand) 3-2

August 8th

Final

60kg Kellie Harrington (Ireland) beat Beatriz Ferreira (Brazil) 5-0

Warm up: 12/15 mins

(General warm up/stretching)

Technical/shadow rounds

Juniors 6 x 2mins

Youths 6 x 3mins

1min rest between rounds

**Record your shadow boxing and look for areas to improve**

Round 1 (no punching)

Faint Lead hand to body/head for first half of round then faint both hands for rest of the round,

Round 2 (finish attack on front hand)

Any distance, finish each combination on front hand(any punch) followed by good defensive movement.

Round 3 (finish attack on back hand)

Any distance, finish each combination on back hand(any punch) followed by good defensive movement.

Round 4 (long distance/changing pace)

Long distance, work on changing pace. for example attack at 70% speed for 2or3 attacks then next attack at 100% speed.

Round 5 (mid to short distance/finish attack on explosive power)

Mid/short distance, finish 3or4 punch combinations on single power punch, roll or shift on exit.

Round 6 (open round)

Good shape/stance, working on good punching technique.

IABA Junior/Youth team

(Home sessions)

3mins Rest

Run/sprints

Go to local park/pitch and do below sprints

Juniors 6 x 2mins

Youths 6 x 3mins

1min rest between

Cooldown/stretch

10 mins

Kellie Harrington upgraded her guaranteed bronze medal to at least silver on a split decision over Sudaporn Sessondee of Thailand in Tokyo this morning.

The Dublin lightweight won 3-2 to book her ticket into the 60kg Olympic final at the Ryogoku Kokugikan Arena.

Harrington won the first round of today’s encounter, a repeat of the 2018 World final which the Dubliner also won 3-2, courtesy of some well timed left hooks and two overhand lefts in the final few seconds of an extremely cagey opening frame.

But Sessondee came more into the fight in the second round, landing left jabs and rights with Harrington finishing out the round strongly.

That left if all riding on the last round and Harrington, the No.1 seed, delivered with overhand lefts and combinations to take the round and the fight.

She’ll now meet Brazil’s No. 3 seed Beatriz Ferreira for gold on Sunday morning and the chance to become the third Irish boxer after Michael Carruth and Katie Taylor to finish on top of a podium at the Olympics.

Ferreira beat Mira Potkonen, who beat Katie Taylor at Rio 2016, this morning.

Sunday’s broadcast on RTE 2 begins at 6am (Irish time).

Harrington told RTE that it was another chess match with the Thai fighter.

“I boxed Sudaporn in 2018 in the World final and it was a 3-2 split decision. It was a very, very close decision back then. It was a chess match back then, and it was a chess match today again, she said.

“She’s a fantastic operator, she has a really, really strong left hand, so I was trying not to get hit with that and trying to stay away from it. Trying to tease her on, like my coaches said, and then counter. I felt a little more comfortable towards the end, standing instead of running. It was fantastic, just brilliant.”

Tokyo Olympics

July 24th

Last 32
57kg Kurt Walker (Ireland) beat Jose Quiles (Spain) 5-0

July 25th

Last 32
81kg Emmet Brennan (Ireland) lost to Dilshod Ruzmetov (Uzbekistan) 0-5

July 26th
Last 32

52kg Brendan Irvine (Ireland) lost to Carlo Paalam (Philippines) 1-4

Last 16
57kg Michaela Walsh (Ireland) lost to Irma Testa (Italy) 0-5

July 27th
Last 16

69kg Aidan Walsh (Ireland) beat Albert Menque (Cameroon) 5-0

July 28th

Last 16

75kg Aoife O’Rourke (Ireland) lost to Qian Li (China) 0-5
57kg Kurt Walker (Ireland) beat Mirazizbek Mitzakhalilov (Uzbekistan) 4-1

July 30th
Last 16

60hk Kellie Harrington (Ireland) beat Rebecca Nicoli (Italy) 5-0

Quarter-final
69kg Aidan Walsh (Ireland) beat Mervin Clair (Mauritius) 4-1

August 1st

Quarter-final

57kg Kurt Walker (Ireland) lost to Duke Ragan (USA) 2-3

Semi-final

69kg Aidan Walsh (Ireland) lost to Pat McCormack (Great Britain) (W/O)

(Walsh sustains an ankle injury)

August 3rd

Quarter-final

60kg Kellie Harrington (Ireland) beat Imane Khelif (Algeria) 5-0

August 5th

Semi-final

60kg Kellie Harrington (Ireland) beat Sudaporn Sessondee (Thailand) 3-2

August 8th

Final

60kg Kellie Harrington (Ireland) v Beatriz Ferreira (Brazil)

Kellie Harrington is guaranteed at least bronze from the Olympic Games in Tokyo.

The Dublin lightweight beat Algeria’s Imane Khelif on a unanimous decision this morning to book her ticket into the last four.

Harrington found the target with some beautiful combinations against the North African in round one, two and three and also hit the mark with backhands.

Khelif, who had a height and reach advantage, also found the target but not with the same frequency as Harrington.

Harrington will now meet Thailand’s Sudaporn Sessondee in the semi-finals.

Harrington beat Sessondee on a 3-2 split decision in the 2018 World Elite final.

The final scores from this morning’s bout were 30-27,30-27,30-27,30-27, 29-28 to 2018 World Elite champion Harrington.

“I’m overwhelmed with emotions,” Harrington told RTÉ Sport after the fight.

“You think of getting here and I never think of getting medals. Sometimes I think I’m lucky. I can’t be that lucky to be winning all these things and end up here with a bronze medal in my bag from the Olympic Games.

“Everything I’ve achieved I owe to Noel Burke, who is my club coach at home. I owe it to these men [coaches] and the rest of the high performance team. Not only this, I owe it to my team mates, as well, for all the sparring and the preparation and support that they’ve give me out here – and we give each other – it’s just been fantastic.

“The support that I’m getting from the community back home. I’ve heard that it’s lit back home. I’m just so happy and my emotions really come when it comes to this. To be able to give them something to be happy about and to sing and dance. Just for one person lifting the nation.

Of her opponent Harrington said, “very, very awkward and throwing from real far but making mad grunting noises. She had really long arms and it was hard to get in and do what I would like to do.

“It wasn’t an amazing fight but it was a fight that I won – I did enough to win it. She was smiling at me and sticking out her tongue. I was smiling back as if to say, ‘it’s all fun and games until my hand gets lifted!’

Irish boxing has two bronze medals as Belfast welter Aidan Walsh will be bringing home bronze.

Irish boxing has now won nine medals from three of the last four Olympics.

Tokyo Olympics

July 24th

Last 32
57kg Kurt Walker (Ireland) beat Jose Quiles (Spain) 5-0

July 25th

Last 32
81kg Emmet Brennan (Ireland) lost to Dilshod Ruzmetov (Uzbekistan) 0-5

July 26th
Last 32

52kg Brendan Irvine (Ireland) lost to Carlo Paalam (Philippines) 1-4

Last 16
57kg Michaela Walsh (Ireland) lost to Irma Testa (Italy) 0-5

July 27th
Last 16

69kg Aidan Walsh (Ireland) beat Albert Menque (Cameroon) 5-0

July 28th

Last 16

75kg Aoife O’Rourke (Ireland) lost to Qian Li (China) 0-5
57kg Kurt Walker (Ireland) beat Mirazizbek Mitzakhalilov (Uzbekistan) 4-1

July 30th
Last 16

60hk Kellie Harrington (Ireland) beat Rebecca Nicoli (Italy) 5-0

Quarter-final
69kg Aidan Walsh (Ireland) beat Mervin Clair (Mauritius) 4-1

August 1

Quarter-final

57kg Kurt Walker (Ireland) lost to Duke Ragan (USA) 2-3

Semi-final

69kg Aidan Walsh (Ireland) lost to Pat McCormack (Great Britain) (W/O)

(Walsh sustains an ankle injury)

August 3

Quarter-final

60kg Kellie Harrington (Ireland) beat Imane Khelif (Algeria) 5-0

August 5

Semi-final

60kg Kellie Harrington (Ireland) v Sudaporn Sessondee (Thailand)

Kurt Walker lost on a split decision in his bid for at least bronze in Tokyo this morning.

The Canal BC featherweight was edged out 3-2 by Duke Ragan of the USA.

The Ohio fighter took the first round 5-0 across the board, the American doing most of his scoring on the inside and showing good hand speed.

Walker, however, upped the pace and used hit and move tactics to take the second 3-2 to leave in all the play for going into the third.

The third round descended into a brawl with Walker, who needed attention to the cut over his right eye, losing out on the overall score to the American who has returned from the pro ranks where he has won all four of his paid fights.

The Lithuanian, Peruvian and Australian judges gave Ragan the nod, while the Algerian and Kazakhstani judges scored it for Walker.

“Tough, but it was a great fight,” Walker told RTÉ Sport.

“I knew he was going to wait for me. I pushed a little bit too late but I’m proud of myself. I won two rounds out of three.

“He had a good first round, that was it. I was trying to find my distance and so was he, he was just a bit sharper in the first and it won him the fight.

“Just so close.

“I’m proud of myself, I beat the world champion (Mirazizbek Mirzakhalilov).

“I showed everyone back home how good I am. They only see us once every four years but a lot more people will know my name after these Olympics.”

Tokyo Olympics

July 24th

Last 32
57kg Kurt Walker (Ireland) beat Jose Quiles (Spain) 5-0

July 25th

Last 32
81kg Emmet Brennan (Ireland) lost to Dilshod Ruzmetov (Uzbekistan) 0-5

July 26th
Last 32

52kg Brendan Irvine (Ireland) lost to Carlo Paalam (Philippines) 1-4

Last 16
57kg Michaela Walsh (Ireland) lost to Irma Testa (Italy) 0-5

July 27th
Last 16

69kg Aidan Walsh (Ireland) beat Albert Menque (Cameroon) 5-0

July 28th

Last 16

75kg Aoife O’Rourke (Ireland) lost to Qian Li (China) 0-5
57kg Kurt Walker (Ireland) beat Mirazizbek Mitzakhalilov (Uzbekistan) 4-1

July 30th
Last 16

60hk Kellie Harrington (Ireland) beat Rebecca Nicoli (Italy) 5-0

Quarter-final
69kg Aidan Walsh (Ireland) beat Mervin Clair (Mauritius) 4-1

August 1

Quarter-final

57kg Kurt Walker (Ireland) lost to Duke Ragan (USA) 2-3

Semi-final

69kg Aidan Walsh (Ireland) lost to Pat McCormack (Great Britain) (W/O)

(Walsh sustains an ankle injury)

August 3

Quarter-final

60kg Kellie Harrington (Ireland) v Imane Khelif (Algeria)