GRÁINNE WALSH, AOIFE O’Rourke and Patsy Joyce guaranteed Ireland will bring home at least three medals from the World Boxing Championships as they booked places in their respective semi-finals.
Offaly’s Walsh, who boxes out of St. Mary’s BC, Tallaght, beat Yang Liu of China at 65kg this evening.
It was an impressive 3-2 win over the 2024 Olympic silver medallist and former world and Asian champion. The judges were split, with three scoring the titanic bout 28-28 and two 29-27, reflective of a Round 2 point deduction for Walsh and a count-back.
Walsh will now face Kazakhstan’s Aida Abikeyeva in the semi-final on Friday, after she overcame Turkey’s Busenaz Surmeneli.
🥉🥉🥉🥉
Team Ireland's 65kg Grainne Walsh has won at least a World Boxing Championship bronze medal.
After a titanic battle, she was the 3-2 victor over Paris Olympics silver medalist China's Yang Liu.
Roscommon’s O’Rourke, who boxes out of Castlrea BC, beat her Norwegian rival Sunniva Hofstand 4-1 in their 75kg quarter-final on Wednesday afternoon.
Four judges scored the contest 30-27 to O’Rourke and the other scoring it 30-27 to Hofstand.
Two-time Olympian O’Rourke has followed up her silver medal at the IBA World Championships in March, and the four-time European champion will now take on China’s Chengyu Yang in Saturday’s afternoon session.
“It’s just about taking it one fight at a time,” O’Rourke said afterwards. “I am just grateful to have gotten that medal and we’ll push on in the next one and see what we can do.”
She added: “To be here, to be selected by Ireland, is a great honour. The gameplan was just to keep the pressure and intensity there – and try and be clinical and smart with my punches.
“You can do the plan all you want on the pads and you feel great, but when you’re trying to implement it in the ring, it’s another story.”
🥉🥉🥉🥉
Team Ireland's Aoife O'Rourke has won at least a bronze medal at the World Boxing Championships.
She was the 4-1 winner over fellow Olympian Sunniva Hofstead in her quarter finals.
Mullingar’s Joyce quickly followed up on that success as he beat former world champion Mirazizbek Mirzakhalilov to become Ireland’s first male medallist at these championships since Joe Ward in 2018.
Joyce edged a narrow 3-2 decision over his Uzbek opponent in their 55kg quarter-final, and will take on Spain’s Rafael Serrano on Saturday for a place in the final.
Three judges scored the fight 30-27, 29-28, 29-28 in Joyce’s favour, with Mirzakhalilov getting 29-28 and 30-27 nods on the other cards.
“I was the underdog,” a delighted Joyce said afterwards. “I was the underdog yesterday [in the last 16] as well – but age is only a number.
“I came here, 19 years of age, the youngest one on the team, and I’m smashing them up.”
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Triple joy as Walsh, O’Rourke and Joyce guarantee medals at World Boxing Championships
LAST UPDATE | 10 Sep 2025
GRÁINNE WALSH, AOIFE O’Rourke and Patsy Joyce guaranteed Ireland will bring home at least three medals from the World Boxing Championships as they booked places in their respective semi-finals.
Offaly’s Walsh, who boxes out of St. Mary’s BC, Tallaght, beat Yang Liu of China at 65kg this evening.
It was an impressive 3-2 win over the 2024 Olympic silver medallist and former world and Asian champion. The judges were split, with three scoring the titanic bout 28-28 and two 29-27, reflective of a Round 2 point deduction for Walsh and a count-back.
Walsh will now face Kazakhstan’s Aida Abikeyeva in the semi-final on Friday, after she overcame Turkey’s Busenaz Surmeneli.
Roscommon’s O’Rourke, who boxes out of Castlrea BC, beat her Norwegian rival Sunniva Hofstand 4-1 in their 75kg quarter-final on Wednesday afternoon.
Four judges scored the contest 30-27 to O’Rourke and the other scoring it 30-27 to Hofstand.
Two-time Olympian O’Rourke has followed up her silver medal at the IBA World Championships in March, and the four-time European champion will now take on China’s Chengyu Yang in Saturday’s afternoon session.
“It’s just about taking it one fight at a time,” O’Rourke said afterwards. “I am just grateful to have gotten that medal and we’ll push on in the next one and see what we can do.”
She added: “To be here, to be selected by Ireland, is a great honour. The gameplan was just to keep the pressure and intensity there – and try and be clinical and smart with my punches.
“You can do the plan all you want on the pads and you feel great, but when you’re trying to implement it in the ring, it’s another story.”
Mullingar’s Joyce quickly followed up on that success as he beat former world champion Mirazizbek Mirzakhalilov to become Ireland’s first male medallist at these championships since Joe Ward in 2018.
Joyce edged a narrow 3-2 decision over his Uzbek opponent in their 55kg quarter-final, and will take on Spain’s Rafael Serrano on Saturday for a place in the final.
Three judges scored the fight 30-27, 29-28, 29-28 in Joyce’s favour, with Mirzakhalilov getting 29-28 and 30-27 nods on the other cards.
“I was the underdog,” a delighted Joyce said afterwards. “I was the underdog yesterday [in the last 16] as well – but age is only a number.
“I came here, 19 years of age, the youngest one on the team, and I’m smashing them up.”
- Additional reporting from Emma Duffy
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Aoife O'Rourke Boxing hat-trick World Boxing Championships