BOXING

Boxing featured at the modern Olympic Games between St Louis 1904 and Paris 2024 and was Team Ireland’s most successful Olympic sport with 16 medallists.

Michael Carruth won Gold at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, and exactly 20 years to the week later, Katie Taylor won Gold at the London 2012 Olympics. She was the first Irish woman to qualify and compete in an Olympic boxing event. Kellie Harrington is the only Irish boxer to retain an Olympic title, Paddy Barnes is the only other boxer to win a medal at two Olympic Games.

Olympic Medallists from Team Ireland: 

  • John McNally, Silver, Bantamweight, Helsinki 1952.
  • Fred Tiedt, Silver, Welterweight, Melbourne 1956.
  • Tony ‘Socks’ Byrne, Bronze, Lightweight, Melbourne 1956
  • Fred Gilroy, Bronze, Bantamweight, Melbourne 1956.
  • John Caldwell, Bronze, Flyweight, Melbourne 1956.
  • Jim McCourt, Bronze, Lightweight, Tokyo 1964.
  • Hugh Russell, Bronze, Flyweight, Moscow 1980
  • Michael Carruth, Gold, Welterweight, Barcelona 1992.
  • Wayne McCullough, Silver, Bantamweight, Barcelona 1992.
  • Kenneth Egan, Silver, Light Heavyweight, Beijing 2008.
  • Darren Sutherland, Bronze, Middleweight, Beijing 2008.
  • Paddy Barnes, Bronze, Light Flyweight, Beijing 2008.
  • John Joe Nevin, Silver, Bantamweight, London 2012.
  • Katie Taylor, Gold, Lightweight, London 2012.
  • Michael Conlon, Bronze, Flyweight, London 2012.
  • Paddy Barnes, Bronze, Light Flyweight, London 2012.
  • Kellie Harrington, Gold, Lightweight, Tokyo 2020.
  • Aidan Walsh, Bronze, Welterweight, Tokyo 2020.
  • Kellie Harrington, Gold, Lightweight, Paris 2024.

BOXING NEWS

Team Ireland Set for Youth Olympic Games Dakar 2026

Team Ireland is preparing for an exciting milestone on the Olympic pathway as we look ahead to the Youth Olympic Games Dakar 2026. This is the first Olympic event ever to be hosted on the African continent. The Games take place from 31 October to 13 November 2026, bringing together the world’s best young athletes [...]

Events coming up in May 2026

Athletics 2-3 May: World Athletics Relays, Gaborone, Botswana   Boxing 3-10 May: Feliks Stamm Tournament, Warsaw, Poland   Canoeing 29-31 May: Canoe Slalom World Cup 1, Ljubljana, Slovenia   Cycling 1-3 May: Downhill & Cross-country Olympic World Series round 1, South Korea 22-24 May: Rás Tailteann, Ireland 22-24 May: Cross Country World Series, Czech Republic [...]

Istanbul 2027 European Games

A Key Step on the Road to LA28  The 4th European Games will take place in Istanbul, Turkey from 16 to 27 June 2027, one year out from the Olympic Games in Los Angeles. For Team Ireland, Istanbul represents a significant moment in the LA28 cycle: a major competitive platform, a qualification opportunity across multiple [...]

Irish Athletic Boxing Association Rebrands as Boxing Ireland

The Irish Athletic Boxing Association (IABA) becomes Boxing Ireland, marking a transformational milestone for the sport and the beginning of a powerful new era of visibility, engagement and commercial growth for Ireland’s most successful Olympic sport. This rebrand represents far more than a new name or logo. It is about celebrating who they are, recognising [...]

SELECTED ATHLETES

Patrick ‘Pa’ Sharkey

BIOGRAPHY Pa Sharkey competed in the men's heavyweight boxing at the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games on the remarkable strength of a career that had taken him from Donegal to Scotland and then to Australia in pursuit of boxing excellence. A native of Donegal, Sharkey won the Irish junior heavyweight title as a nineteen-year-old and three [...]

Andrew ‘Ando’ Reddy

BIOGRAPHY Ando Reddy competed in the men's flyweight boxing at the 1952 Helsinki Olympic Games, drawing praise for a 'delightful display of shrewd boxing' before losing to the reigning European champion Aristide Pozzali of Italy in a bout in which a last-minute warning proved decisive in swinging the verdict in the Italian's favour. He was [...]

Tommy Reddy

BIOGRAPHY Tommy Reddy competed in the men's boxing at the 1952 Helsinki Olympic Games alongside his brother Ando Reddy - the first brothers to represent Ireland at the same Olympic Games. The Reddy brothers were part of a boxing team that included John McNally, Terry Milligan and Peter Crotty among its eight members. Tommy Reddy's [...]

Terry Milligan

BIOGRAPHY Terry Milligan competed in the men's lightweight boxing at the 1952 Helsinki Olympic Games, reaching the quarter-finals in one of the most creditable performances of the Irish boxing team. Described by respected boxing journalist Denis O'Hara as 'one of Irish boxing's all-time greats', Milligan was a bronze medallist at the 1951 European championships and [...]

Peter Crotty

BIOGRAPHY Peter Crotty competed in the men's welterweight boxing at the 1952 Helsinki Olympic Games, having established himself as one of the most formidable amateur welterweights in Europe through four successive Irish welterweight titles - the first Irish boxer to achieve this feat - and a distinguished international record that included representing Europe against the [...]

John McNally

BIOGRAPHY John McNally made history at the 1952 Helsinki Olympic Games as the first Irish boxer to win an Olympic medal, reaching the bantamweight final before losing a split decision to local favourite Pentti Hämäläinen of Finland - a verdict almost universally regarded by press and officials as unjust - and carried the Irish flag [...]

John Lyttle

BIOGRAPHY John Lyttle competed in the men's heavyweight boxing at the 1952 Helsinki Olympic Games in a ferocious opening bout against Jean Lansiaux of France - a contest of such intensity that Lansiaux's face was so badly damaged in the exchange that the Frenchman took no further part in the tournament after winning the bout. [...]

Martin Smyth

BIOGRAPHY Martin Smyth competed in the men's bantamweight boxing at the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games, one of four members of the Irish boxing team who had to overcome serious weight management challenges before and during the Games. A member of the Star Club in Belfast, Smyth had secured Olympic selection but faced persistent difficulties making [...]

Henry ‘Harry’ Perry

BIOGRAPHY Harry Perry competed in the men's light-welterweight boxing at the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games, fighting below his natural weight class after being displaced from welterweight by Fred Tiedt's selection. A natural lightweight, Perry had won the Irish senior lightweight title in 1955 and been denied a place at the 1952 Helsinki Games because of [...]

Sean McCafferty

BIOGRAPHY Sean McCafferty competed in the men's flyweight boxing at the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games, reaching the quarter-finals before being eliminated by the eventual champion Fernando Atzori of Italy. From Francis Street in Belfast's Smithfield area, in a town house that at one stage housed three families and twenty-eight people, McCafferty joined the St John [...]

Patrick ‘Paddy’ Fitzsimons

BIOGRAPHY Paddy Fitzsimons competed in the men's boxing at the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games, part of an Irish team that benefited from the most structured collective training programme in Irish Olympic boxing history to that point. The Belfast-based boxers trained under coach Harry Enright at the Albert Foundry Club in Paisley Park and at the [...]

Christopher ‘Chris’ Rafter

BIOGRAPHY Chris Rafter competed in the men's bantamweight boxing at the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games, bringing a remarkable transatlantic career to the Olympic arena. After his original selection for the 1956 Melbourne Games was not confirmed, Rafter emigrated to Chicago where he joined the US Army and went on to win three successive Chicago Golden [...]

Brian Anderson

BIOGRAPHY Brian Anderson competed in the men's boxing at the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games as a replacement for Jim Neill, who had been forced to withdraw after suffering a broken jaw in May and subsequently requiring an appendectomy. London-based at the time of his selection, Anderson was part of an Irish boxing team that benefited [...]

Michael ‘Mick’ Dowling

BIOGRAPHY Mick Dowling competed in the men's bantamweight boxing at the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games, winning his opening two bouts with explosive performances before being eliminated in the quarter-finals. From Castlecomer, Co. Kilkenny, Dowling moved to Dublin in 1962 and trained as a waiter at the Gresham Hotel. His sporting background was in hurling [...]

Martin Quinn

BIOGRAPHY Martin Quinn competed in the men's lightweight boxing at the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games and emerged as one of the heroes of the Irish boxing campaign, winning his opening bout in just fourteen seconds before pushing the reigning Olympic and European champion - and eventual silver medallist - Józef Grudzień of Poland to [...]

Edward ‘Eddie’ Treacy

BIOGRAPHY Eddie Tracey competed in the men's featherweight boxing at the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games, winning his opening bout before facing local hero Antonio Roldán of Mexico - the eventual gold medallist - in his second contest. A Dublin photographer and a member of the Arbour Hill Boxing Club, Tracey stepped out of a [...]

Eamon McCusker

BIOGRAPHY Eamon McCusker competed in the men's light-middleweight boxing at the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games, facing Cuba's Rolando Garbey - one of the most formidable heavy punchers in the competition - in his opening bout. A 23-year-old shoe machinist from Banbridge, Co. Down, McCusker was a member of the St John Bosco Boxing Club. [...]

Brendan McCarthy

BIOGRAPHY Brendan McCarthy competed in the men's flyweight boxing at the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games, losing his opening bout on a unanimous points decision to Ricardo Delgado of Mexico - the eventual gold medallist. A member of the Arbour Hill Boxing Club, McCarthy was one of three Arbour Hill representatives on the Irish boxing [...]

Brian Byrne

BIOGRAPHY Brian Byrne competed in the men's light-middleweight boxing at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games, losing a split decision to Puerto Rico's Wilfredo Guzman in a bout of close-quarter exchanges characterised by willingness from both boxers to stand and trade. Both men landed solid body blows throughout, and a standing count of eight awarded to [...]

Christy McLoughlin

BIOGRAPHY Christy McLoughlin competed in the men's welterweight boxing at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games, losing a unanimous decision to Britain's Colin Jones in what was one of the most controversial judging decisions involving an Irish boxer in Olympic history - a bout in which all five jury members marking the contest as an academic [...]

Gerry Hamill

BIOGRAPHY Gerry Hamill competed in the men's lightweight boxing at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games, losing a 4-1 majority decision to the tough Yugoslav Ace Rusevski in a bout he later admitted he lost through his own tactical error. From the Holy Family Club in Belfast and coached by the legendary Gerry Storey, Hamill opened [...]

Billy Walsh

BIOGRAPHY Billy Walsh competed in the men's welterweight boxing at the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games, suffering a heartbreaking defeat in his first bout when a cut eye led to the referee stopping the contest against the local Korean favourite Kyung-sup Song. From Co. Wexford, Walsh had been involved in boxing since he was seven years [...]

Davy Larmour

BIOGRAPHY Davy Larmour was the best-placed Irish boxer at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games, reaching the quarter-finals of the men's flyweight division before losing a narrow 4-1 points decision to Leo Randolph of the USA - a teenager who went on to win the flyweight gold medal. From the Shankill Road in Belfast and a [...]

Brendan Dunne

BIOGRAPHY Brendan Dunne competed in the men's light-flyweight boxing at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games, winning his opening bout when his Japanese opponent suffered a badly cut eye before being knocked out in the first round of his second contest. Irish light-flyweight champion, Dunne faced Puerto Rico's Orlando Maldonando in his second bout and was [...]

Michael Carruth

BIOGRAPHY Michael Carruth won the gold medal in the welterweight boxing at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games - one of the most celebrated achievements in the history of Irish sport. His Olympic journey began at the 1988 Seoul Games, where he lost to Sweden's George Cramne in the second round in what proved to be [...]

Joe Lawlor

BIOGRAPHY Joe Lawlor competed in the men's flyweight boxing at the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games. Lawlor advanced to the round of 16 before being eliminated. He secured a first-round victory by stoppage before achieving a knockout in the second round. This win highlighted Lawlor'ss agreseive style and power. OTHER BOXING OLYMPIANS{{ vc_btn: title=SEE+ALL+ATHLETES&style=outline-custom&outline_custom_color=%2300ed00&outline_custom_hover_background=%23ffffff&outline_custom_hover_text=%23001136&shape=square&css=.vc_custom_1677079573058%7Bmargin-top%3A+10px+%21important%3Bmargin-left%3A+0px+%21important%3B%7D&link=url%3A%252Fathletes-list%252F&el_class=see-all-athletes }} Adam [...]

Seán Doyle

BIOGRAPHY Seán Doyle competed in the men's boxing at the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games, winning his first bout before being stopped in the first round of his second contest. Doyle stopped the Venezuelan Nelson Trujillo in his opening bout, but then faced Romania's Florin Livadaru in his second contest and was stopped in the first [...]

Phil Sutcliffe

BIOGRAPHY Philip 'Phil' Sutcliffe competed in the men's boxing at the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games, losing a unanimous decision to his Mexican opponent. Dr Tom Hunt describes Sutcliffe as 'a double European bronze medallist' at the time of Moscow, a distinction that placed him among the most decorated members of the Irish boxing team. He [...]

P.J. Davitt

BIOGRAPHY Patrick James 'P.J.' Davitt competed in the men's boxing at the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games, losing a unanimous decision to his Romanian opponent. Davitt was part of an eight-man Irish boxing team - one of the larger Irish boxing squads at an Olympic Games to that point - that competed in Moscow having benefited [...]

John Lowey

BIOGRAPHY John Lowey competed in the men's light-heavyweight boxing at the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games, recording two victories before being eliminated in the quarter-finals. Hampered by a fractured knuckle in his left hand, he was eliminated on a split decision to Nyamaagin Altankhuyag of Mongolia. OTHER BOXING OLYMPIANS{{ vc_btn: title=SEE+ALL+ATHLETES&style=outline-custom&outline_custom_color=%2300ed00&outline_custom_hover_background=%23ffffff&outline_custom_hover_text=%23001136&shape=square&css=.vc_custom_1677079573058%7Bmargin-top%3A+10px+%21important%3Bmargin-left%3A+0px+%21important%3B%7D&link=url%3A%252Fathletes-list%252F&el_class=see-all-athletes }} Adam NolanAidan WalshAndy LeeAoife [...]

Martin Brereton

BIOGRAPHY Martin Brereton competed in the men's light-welterweight boxing at the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games, losing his opening bout to Cuba's Jose Aguilar who stopped him in the first round. From Edenderry, Co. Offaly, Brereton was part of an eight-man Irish boxing team that competed in Moscow from a strong base of preparation, including a [...]

Gerry Hawkins

BIOGRAPHY Gerard 'Gerry' Hawkins competed in the men's light-flyweight boxing at the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games, losing a unanimous decision to Bulgaria's Ismail Mustafov - an opponent who, in the subsequent years, was voted the Bulgarian boxer of the twentieth century, winning the World Championship title in 1982, four European amateur titles, a bronze medal [...]

Barry McGuigan

BIOGRAPHY Finbar Patrick 'Barry' McGuigan won the WBA featherweight professional world title on 8 June 1985 at Loftus Road, London, defeating the legendary Panamanian Eusebio Pedroza in one of the most celebrated nights in Irish sporting history. His path to the world title began in earnest at the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games, where he lost [...]

Tommy Corr

BIOGRAPHY Tommy Corr competed in the men's lightweight boxing at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games, defeating one of his Lake Placid training sparring partners Arigoma Chiponda of Zimbabwe in his opening bout before losing a majority decision to a Nigerian opponent in his second contest. The Irish boxing team at LA was based at [...]

Samuel ‘Sam’ Storey

BIOGRAPHY Samuel Storey competed in the men's light-middleweight boxing at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games. Sam lost his opening bout to Italian Romolo Casamonica - a boxer described as 'the Italian gypsy', who executed what Dr Tom Hunt describes as 'a demolition job' in the third round after Storey had shaded the opening round [...]

Paul Fitzgerald

BIOGRAPHY Paul Fitzgerald competed in the men's featherweight boxing at two Olympic Games - the 1984 Los Angeles Games and the 1988 Seoul Games. From Arklow, Co. Wicklow, Fitzgerald was a five-time national senior champion and a superb defensive boxer who had been based in the United States since 1984. At Los Angeles he won [...]

Kieran Joyce

BIOGRAPHY Kieran Joyce competed in the men's light-middleweight boxing at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games, winning his opening bout before losing a disputed majority decision to Finland's Joni Nyman. The result was a controversial one that typified Olympic boxing at the time, noting that Joyce's opponent was cautioned on a number of occasions for [...]

Paul Griffin

BIOGRAPHY Paul Griffin competed in the men's featherweight boxing at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games. Ranked fifth in the world and European champion, Griffin was Ireland's leading medal prospect for Barcelona. However, his Olympic dreams lasted less than four minutes and ended in nightmarish circumstances. His opponent, the strong Zambian southpaw Steven Chungu, was cautioned [...]

Paul Douglas

BIOGRAPHY Paul Douglas competed in the men's heavyweight boxing at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games, reaching the quarter-finals in what Dr Tom Hunt describes as a performance that surpassed expectations, winning two bouts before losing to triple European champion Arnold Vanderlijde of the Netherlands. From Belfast, Douglas dominated the Swedish champion John Pettersson 8-1 in [...]

Francis Barrett

BIOGRAPHY Francis Barrett (known as Francie Barrett) carried the Irish flag at the Opening Ceremony of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, becoming the first member of the Irish Travelling community to represent Ireland at the Olympics - a moment of profound cultural and social significance in a ceremony that also celebrated Mohammed Ali and Martin [...]

Paul Buttimer

BIOGRAPHY Paul Buttimer competed in the men's light-flyweight boxing at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games, losing his opening bout to Nigerian boxer Moses Malagu by 8 points to 12. From Cork and a member of Sunnyside Boxing Club, Buttimer's struggle to make the weight limit was complicated by a knee injury that had interfered with [...]

Damaen Kelly

BIOGRAPHY Damaen Kelly competed in the men's flyweight boxing at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, reaching the quarter-finals before losing 13-6 to Bolat Zhumadilov of Kazakhstan - the world's top-ranked amateur flyweight at the time. From Belfast and coached by Michael Hawkins at Holy Trinity Boxing Club, Kelly was supported by the Olympic Aid-Atlanta Scheme [...]

Cathal O’Grady

BIOGRAPHY Cathal O'Grady competed in the men's heavyweight boxing at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games as the youngest member of the Irish boxing team and the youngest boxer in the entire heavyweight division. From Enfield, Co. Meath, O'Grady established an early 6-3 lead in his opening contest against New Zealand's Garth da Silva before being [...]

Kevin McBride

BIOGRAPHY Kevin McBride secured his place in boxing history on 11 June 2005 at the MCI Centre in Washington DC when he became the last opponent to beat the once-fearsome former world heavyweight champion Mike Tyson, forcing Tyson to quit on his stool at the end of the sixth round - the only time in [...]

Brian Magee

BIOGRAPHY Brian Magee competed in the men's middleweight boxing at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, reaching the quarter-finals before losing to Mohammed Bahari of Algeria - who went on to win bronze. From Lisburn, Co. Antrim, and coached by Olympic team manager-coach Michael Hawkins at Holy Trinity Boxing Club in Belfast, Magee was regarded alongside [...]

Michael Roche

BIOGRAPHY Michael Roche competed in the men's light-middleweight boxing at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games - the only Irish boxer at those Games. Born in 1971 and brought up in Fair Hill on the northside of Cork city, Roche began boxing aged ten at the Sunnyside Boxing Club just off Blarney Street, winning six county [...]

Andy Lee

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Johnny Joyce

BIOGRAPHY John Joe "Johnny" Joyce represented Ireland in the men's light welterweight boxing at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, winning his opening bout before losing to eventual gold medallist Felix Diaz of the Dominican Republic in one of the most controversial results of the Games. Joyce defeated Hungary's Gyula Kate 9-5 in the last 32, [...]

Darren O’Neill

BIOGRAPHY Darren O'Neill captained Ireland's boxing team at the 2012 London Olympic Games and bore the Irish flag at the closing ceremony - a fitting honour for one of the most respected figures in Irish amateur boxing. Competing at middleweight (75kg), he won his opening bout 15-6 against Nigeria's Muideen Olalekan Akanji before losing 19-12 [...]

Adam Nolan

BIOGRAPHY Adam Nolan represented Ireland in the men's welterweight boxing at the 2012 London Olympic Games, winning his opening bout before losing in the round of 16. From Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford, Nolan is the second Wexford-born boxer to qualify for the Olympics after his coach Billy Walsh, and a member of Bray Boxing Club - [...]

Joe Ward

BIOGRAPHY Joe Ward represented Ireland in the light-heavyweight division at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. He was eliminated in the round of 16 by Ecuador's Carlos Andrés Mina on a controversial split decision, having received two points deductions from the referee during the bout. Ward came to Rio as one of the pre-tournament favourites, having [...]

Steven Donnelly

BIOGRAPHY Steven Donnelly represented Ireland in the welterweight division at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. He defeated Algeria's Zohir Kedache in the round of 32 and Mongolia's Byamba Tüvshinbat in the round of 16 before losing to Morocco's Mohammed Rabii in the quarterfinals. His route to Rio was an unlikely one. He had previously represented [...]

David Joyce

BIOGRAPHY David Joyce represented Ireland in the lightweight division at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. He defeated Andrique Allisop of the Seychelles by unanimous decision in the round of 32 before losing to Azerbaijan's Albert Selimov in the round of 16. Joyce qualified for Rio after winning a box-off against Turkey's Volkan Gockek at the [...]

John Joe Nevin

BIOGRAPHY John Joe Nevin won a silver medal at the London 2012 Olympic Games in the bantamweight division. Nevin is from Mullingar, County Westmeath and developed his career with St Michael’s Boxing Club. Nevin is a two time Olympian, competing at Beijing 2008 and at London 2012, where he progressed to the final with victories [...]

Michael Conlan

BIOGRAPHY Michael Conlan won the bronze medal in the flyweight division at the London 2012 Olympic Games. Conlan is from Belfast and developed his career through the amateur system with St John Bosco Boxing Club, establishing himself as one of Ireland’s leading boxers. He also competed at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games where he narrowly [...]

Katie Taylor

BIOGRAPHY Katie Taylor won the gold medal in the women's lightweight boxing event at the London 2012 Olympic Games, becoming the first ever Olympic women's champion and Ireland's first Olympic boxing gold medallist since Michael Carruth in 1992. She was Ireland's flag bearer at the opening ceremony. Taylor dominated the tournament, winning all four bouts, [...]

Darren Sutherland

BIOGRAPHY Darren Sutherland won a bronze medal in the middleweight division at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. Sutherland was from Dublin and boxed out of St Saviour’s Academy, where he developed into one of Ireland’s leading amateur boxers. At Beijing 2008 he secured a podium finish with a series of victories before losing in the [...]

Paddy Barnes

BIOGRAPHY Paddy Barnes won bronze medals in boxing at both the Beijing 2008 and London 2012 Olympic Games. He is a three time Olympian and was the flag bearer at this third Games, Rio 2016. Barnes is from Belfast and boxed with the Holy Family Boxing Club, emerging as a leading light flyweight on the [...]

Kenneth Egan

BIOGRAPHY Kenneth Egan won a silver medal in the light heavyweight division at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. Egan is from Clondalkin, Dublin and started his boxing career with his local club, Neilstown Boxing Club. At Beijing 2008 he progressed to the final with victories over opponents from China, Cuba and France before claiming silver [...]

Wayne McCullough

BIOGRAPHY Wayne McCullough won a silver medal in the bantamweight division at the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games. McCullough is from Belfast and trained at the Holy Trinity Boxing Club. At the 1996 Olympic Games he progressed to the final with victories over opponents from Kazakhstan, Canada and Thailand before securing silver. He went on to [...]

Hugh Russell

BIOGRAPHY Hugh Russell won a bronze medal in the flyweight division at the 1980 Moscow Olympics - Ireland's first Olympic medal in 16 years since Jim McCourt's boxing bronze in Tokyo in 1964. He defeated opponents from Iraq, Tanzania and North Korea before losing to Bulgaria's Petar Lessov in the semi-finals. Known as "Little Red" [...]

Jim McCourt

BIOGRAPHY Jim McCourt won a bronze medal in the men's lightweight boxing at the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games - the sixth boxing medal in Ireland's Olympic history and the only Irish medal won during the three Olympic Games of the 1960s. Born on 24 January 1944 in Leeson Street, off the Lower Falls Road in [...]

Tony Byrne

BIOGRAPHY Tony Byrne won a bronze medal in the men's lightweight boxing at the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games and served as flag bearer for Ireland at the Opening Ceremony of those Games. Born on 7 June 1930 in Hardman's Gardens, Drogheda, Byrne was introduced to boxing at the local Tredagh Boxing Club at twelve by [...]

Freddie Gilroy

BIOGRAPHY Freddie Gilroy won a bronze medal in the men's bantamweight boxing at the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games. He reached those Games only after his workmates at the Beltex textile plant in Belfast raised the £600 required to fund his place on the aeroplane - a collection that began with a church gate fundraiser in [...]

John Caldwell

BIOGRAPHY John Caldwell won a bronze medal in the men's flyweight boxing at the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games. It was the fourth boxing medal won by Ireland at those Games and one of the most courageous performances of the entire tournament, competing in his semi-final with two badly swollen eyes from his quarter-final bout and [...]

Fred Tiedt

BIOGRAPHY Fred Tiedt won a silver medal in the men's welterweight boxing at the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games in one of the most controversial verdicts in the history of Olympic boxing - with the aggregated judges' scores giving Tiedt a winning margin of 299-297 over Romanian opponent Nicolae Linca, yet the gold medal was awarded [...]

John McNally

BIOGRAPHY John McNally won a silver medal in the bantamweight division at the Helsinki 1952 Olympic Games. He was Ireland’s first Olympic boxing medallist and the first ever Olympic medalist from Belfast. McNally boxed out of the Holy Family club and rose through the amateur ranks during a formative period for Irish boxing on the [...]

Jennifer Lehane

BIOGRAPHY Jennifer Lehane represented Ireland in the women's 54kg bantamweight boxing event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, becoming the first Irish female bantamweight to compete at the Olympics. Given a bye into the round of 16, she lost by unanimous decision to China's Chang Yuan, who went on to win gold. Lehane grew up [...]

Gráinne Walsh

BIOGRAPHY Gráinne Walsh represented Ireland in the women's 66kg boxing event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, where she was eliminated in the preliminary round by Hungary's Anna Hamori on a 3-2 split decision - a result that drew considerable controversy, as Hamori had a point deducted for holding during the bout. Walsh grew up [...]

Daina Moorehouse

BIOGRAPHY Daina Moorehouse represented Ireland in the women's 50kg boxing event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Moorehouse began boxing at the age of 11 at Enniskerry Boxing Club alongside her brother Michael, and won her first Irish age-group title in 2015. She won gold and the Best Boxer award at the European Junior Championships [...]

Jack Marley

BIOGRAPHY Jack Marley represented Ireland in the men's 92kg heavyweight boxing event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, becoming the first Irish heavyweight to compete at the Olympics since Cathal O'Grady at Atlanta 1996. He beat Poland's Mateusz Bereznicki 4-1 in the round of 32, before losing in the quarter-finals 4-1 to 2022 Asian Games [...]

Jude Gallagher

BIOGRAPHY Jude Gallagher represented Ireland in the men's 57kg featherweight boxing event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, where he lost in the round of 16 to the Philippines' Carlo Paalam - the Tokyo 2020 flyweight silver medallist - by unanimous decision on closely contested scorecards, most judges having it 29-28. Known as "The Tyrone [...]

Dean Clancy

BIOGRAPHY Dean Clancy represented Ireland in the men's 63.5kg boxing event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, where he was eliminated in the round of 32. He lost on a 3-2 split decision to Jordan's Obada Al-Kasbeh, a three-time Olympian, despite Al-Kasbeh receiving a point deduction during the bout. Clancy began boxing at the age [...]

Aidan Walsh

BIOGRAPHY Aidan Walsh won an Olympic bronze medal at Tokyo 2020 by beating Merven Clair of Mauritius in the quarter-finals before an ankle injury unfortunately prevented him from contesting the semi-finals. In 2022 he became a Commonwealth Games gold medalist alongside his sister Michaela who won the women's featherweight division, marking a historic achievement for [...]

Emmet Brennan

BIOGRAPHY Emmet Brennan represented Ireland in the men's light heavyweight boxing event at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, where he was eliminated in the round of 32 by world championship silver medallist Dilshodbek Ruzmetov of Uzbekistan. His emotional interview after the bout, in which he spoke openly about the sacrifices made on the road to [...]

Kellie Harrington

BIOGRAPHY Kellie Harrington is the first Irish boxer to win back-to-back Olympic gold medals. Her ascent in international boxing began with a silver medal at the 2016 AIBA Women's World Boxing Championships in the light welterweight (64kg) category. Transitioning to the lightweight division, Harrington clinched gold at the 2018 AIBA Women's World Boxing Championships and [...]

Aoife O’Rourke

BIOGRAPHY Aoife O’Rourke competed at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games in boxing in the women’s middleweight division. O’Rourke is from Castlerea, County Roscommon and developed her career through the Irish amateur boxing system with Castlerea Boxing Club. Career highlights include winning gold medals at the European Championships in 2022 and 2024 and representing Ireland at [...]

Kurt Walker

BIOGRAPHY Kurt Walker represented Ireland in the men's featherweight boxing event at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, finishing joint 5th overall. He opened with a unanimous decision win over Spain's Jose Quiles, then produced one of the upsets of the tournament - beating top seed and reigning world champion Mirazizbek Mirzakhalilov of Uzbekistan by split [...]

Brendan Irvine

BIOGRAPHY Brendan Irvine was the captain of the Irish boxing team; and a flagbearer for Ireland at the Tokyo 2020 Games. He made his first Olympics in Rio 2016 at the age of just 20 where he was beaten in the last 16 by Ukbekistan’s Shakhobiddin Zoirov. He won 49kg silver at the 2015 European [...]

Michaela Walsh

BIOGRAPHY Michaela Walsh represented Ireland in the women's 57kg featherweight boxing event at two Olympic Games, making the round of 16 at both Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024. At Tokyo she lost a close fight to Italy's Irma Testa; at Paris she was beaten on a unanimous 5-0 decision by Bulgaria's Svetlana Staneva. Walsh grew [...]

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