Boxing:Irish flyweight Ceire Smith is through to the last 32 of the AIBA World Women's Championships in Qinhuangdao, China, but Drimnagh middleweight bowed out in the first round today.
Cavan boxer Smith stopped Veglina Svetlana of Tajikistan in the third round, after a thoroughly dominant performance that saw her opponent receive standing counts in each round.
Eventually, with the score 16-4 in Smith’s favour, the bout was stopped half a minute into the penultimate round.
Jamaican Sarah-Joy Irish Rae awaits Smith in the next round tomorrow.
Kavanagh was beaten by just four points, 23-19, in a far more competitive bout with Venezuelan Francelis Paez Carmona.
Three-time world lightweight champion Katie Taylor will open the defence of her crown on Monday, in the last 32 against Tunisia’s Rim Jouini, who beat Juliana da Rocha Canedo of Portugal 16-8 this afternoon.
The world number one received a bye when the draw was made yesterday.
Three Olympic places each are available for European boxers in the flyweight, lightweight and middleweight weight classes in China.