- Updated at 17.15
JOE WARD, MICHAEL Conlan, Con Sheehan and Roy Sheehan all won their respective bouts at the AIBA World Championships on Sunday, though there was disappointment and defeat for European light-welterweight champion Ray Moylette.
Belfast fly-weight Conlan had a narrow 18-17 victory over Olzhas Sattibayev of Kazakhstan and will now face number two seed Nordine Oubaali of France in the round of last 16 on Tuesday – knowing that victory will also secure him a place at next year’s Olympics Games in London.
Ward, for his part, fought an incredible second round against Dilovarsho Abdurakhmanov of Tajikistan to claim a 22-4 win. The 17-year-old was 3-1 and 13-3 ahead at the end of round one and two and completed his task in style. The European light-heavyweight champion now fights Iranian Ehsan Rouzbahani – again on Tuesday – with another slot for London up for grabs.
Super-heavyweight Con Sheehan, meanwhile, needed just two rounds to secure his second win of the Championship. His opponent, Faruth Kalonov of Tajikistan, took two standing counts (while 24-4 down), before the Tipperary man was awarded passage into the last 16 of the competition.
Roy Sheehan will box Lithuanian Egidijus Kavaliauskas after a closely-fought 21-17 over Borna Katalinic of Croatia in the final Irish fight of the day.
There was no such luck for Moylette though, who was defeated by 2010 Commonwealth champion Manoj Kumars of India. The latter was 5-3 ahead after the first round and never relinquished his lead as Moylette went out on a 19-7 score.
Five more fighters, including Ken Egan, Paddy Barnes and John Joe Nevin, are in action on Monday.