BOXING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS:IRISH AMATEUR boxing always seems to end up where it needs to be. After a season of dispute and injunctions, of lawyers and box-offs, of shock results, threats to turn professional and European Championship medals, yesterday at the National Stadium head coach Billy Walsh officially revealed his team to travel to the World Championships in Baku, Azerbaijan, later this month.
A sport that seems to do better the more fractious and winding the road is to get there Walsh, with no hint of hyperbole, declared that this team was even better than the one that travelled to Beijing and won three Olympic medals. Ken Egan and Paddy Barnes, Beijing medal winners, are included for Baku, with Ireland’s newest heavyweight, Egan, again installed as captain.
“Yeah, it’s a good team, a very good team,” said Walsh. “We’ve five ranked in the top 10 in the world and another two just outside it as well as Katie Taylor, who has been the number one in the world for the last five years.”
Paddy Barnes, the 2010 European Champion, did not compete in this year’s European Championships due to a hand injury, while Joe Ward and Ray Moylette are 2011 European winners. John Joe Nevin, ranked fourth in the world in the bantamweight division, is the 2009 World bronze medallist and middleweight Darren O’Neill the 2010 European silver medallist.
Those five boxers, who reported injured for the recent controversial box offs in the National Stadium, are healthy enough to travel to their training camp in Cologne, Germany from where they will fly to Baku for the start of the World Championships on September 24th. “We set a target at the beginning of the year that we qualify five boxers over this Olympic process and that at the World Championships we qualify three,” added Walsh.
“That’s three in the top eight and one medal. I’d be very, very happy to exceed that and there’s every possibility to exceed that. John Joe Nevin is the only one to have won a medal in the World Championships since we’ve started. We’ve always struggled.”
The World Championships double as London 2012 qualifiers.
Both the gifted 17-year-old Ward, ranked second in the world, and Moylette, ranked sixth, are both seeded in Baku.
The move up may take some time for Egan to put on weight without affecting his speed. But he has been satisfied with progress so far. “I feel comfortable at the weight. I’m trying to bring my speed and my movement with me and I’ve been handling myself fairly well,” he said. “But the test will be the top heavyweights.”
The 29-year-old Egan already has a world ranking of 13.
Paddy Barnes (49Kg, Light-flyweight)
Club:Holy Family BC, Belfast.
Age:24.
Stance:Orthodox.
Major Honours:2008 Olympic bronze; 2010 European and Commonwealth champion; Five- time (and current) Irish Elite champion.
AIBA World ranking:8th.
Michael Conlon (52Kg, Flyweight)
Club:St John Bosco BC, Belfast.
Age:19.
Stance:Orthodox.
Major Honours:2011 Irish Elite champion; 2011 Gee Bee Multi Nations Gold; 2011 German Multi Nations Gold.
John Joe Nevin (56Kg, Bantamweight)
Club:Cavan BC.
Age:22.
Stance:Orthodox.
Major Honours:Beijing Olympian; 2009 World bronze; 2009 EU champion; Four-time Irish Elite champion.
AIBA World ranking:4th.
David Oliver Joyce (60kg, Lightweight)
Club:St Michael's Athy, Kildare.
Age:24.
Stance:Orthodox.
Major honours:2009 EU champion; Four-time Irish Elite champion.
Ray Moylette (64Kg, Light-welterweight)
Club:St Anne's, Mayo.
Age:21.
Stance:Orthodox.
Major Honours:2011 European Senior champion; 2008 AIBA World Youth Champion; 2010 Irish Elite Champion.
AIBA World ranking:6th.
Roy Sheehan (69Kg, Welterweight)
Club:St Michael's Athy, Kildare.
Age:27.
Stance:Orthodox.
Major Honours:2007 EU champion; Three- time Irish Elite champion.
Darren O’Neil (75Kg, Middleweight)
Club:Paulstown, Kilkenny.
Age:25.
Stance:Southpaw.
Major Honours:2010 European silver medallist; 2009 EU Champion; Three-time (and current) Irish Elite champion.
AIBA World ranking:9th.
Joe Ward (81Kg, Light-heavyweight)
Club:Moate, Westmeath.
Age:17.
Stance:Southpaw.
Major honours:2011 European Senior champion; 2009 AIBA World Junior champion; 2010 AIBA World Youth champion; 2011 Irish Elite champion.
AIBA World ranking:2nd.
Ken Egan (91Kg, Heavyweight)
Club:Neilstown, Dublin.
Age:29.
Stance:Southpaw.
Major Honours:2008 Olympic silver medallist; Ten-time Irish Elite champion; Three-time EU champion; Two European bronze medals.
AIBA World ranking:13th
Con Sheehan (91+Kg, Super-heavyweight)
Club:Clonmel BC, Tipperary.
Age:22.
Stance:Orthodox.
Major Honours:2009 EU champion, Four-time (and current) Irish Elite champion.
