ONE OF Ireland’s brightest medal hopes for the London Olympics, Joe Ward, was controversially beaten in Trabzon, Turkey, yesterday amid rancour and complaint by Irish boxing officials.
Ward, the European senior champion and third-ranked boxer in the world in his light heavyweight division, was beaten by Turkish fighter Bahram Muzaffer over three rounds. The Irish team immediately lodged an official complaint about the way the scoring fell against the Irish competitor.
Ward (18) did not win any of the rounds, as Muzaffer led from 5-4 in the first round to 12-11 in the second before winning the bout by three points, 18-15.
However, the Irish complaint fell on deaf ears as International Amateur Boxing Association officials decided that no rule had been broken and that there was therefore no means to overturn the original decision. If the judges’ meeting held today finds that mistakes were made there will be repercussions for the judges concerned, but the decision will stand. Ward will not go to the Olympics this year.
Billy Walsh, head coach of the Irish team, had voiced his concern about fighting in Turkey before the team arrived in Trabzon, an eastern province. It is an issue that has intermittently arisen in amateur boxing over the years and over a number of countries. Non-Irish teams would feel the same about a tournament in Dublin or Belfast.
The scoring system has been changed a number of times and on the face of it seems difficult to unbalance. “Well, it depends on who is pressing the buzzers,” said one Irish official.
“I was surprised he [Joe] was behind in the first round, and he had a good second round,” said Walsh. “I thought he should have been ahead going into the last round but . . . I’ve never seen that . . . It’s something we thought about, coming out here, that there would be a chance for this guy. But that is what you are up against here with a partisan crowd, and even if Joe is hitting they are pressing the wrong buttons.”
The defeat has left a huge hole in Irish medal prospects in London 2012. Ward is one of the most highly rated young boxers in the world and the one everyone else in the draw had wished to avoid.
