HAVING ANNOUNCED THAT he would be making the transition from light-heavyweight to heavyweight last week, Ken Egan allayed any doubts that he would be unable to compete at this level by winning at the Unseeded Open Elite Competition on Saturday.
Egan felt that his 13-5 victory in the heavyweight final over Stephen Ward, a silver medallist at the 2010 Commonwealth Games, would be enough to secure his place at the AIBA World Championships and Olympic qualifiers in Azerbaijan.
The boxer told reporters that despite carrying a hand injury, he was raring to go:
“If they sent just me to Azerbaijan I’ll be happy. I think I am after earning my place on the plane by now.”
Advertisement
Meanwhile, former European Union Championships gold medallist, Roy Sheehan, secured a 14-10 win over Michael O’Reilly in the welterweight final.
Commenting on the victory, he said:
“I’m glad I came out on top. I trained very hard for this. I was out for the last three years with a broken hand and this is my first time fully fit and hopefully it will get better from here on,” said Sheehan. “If they pick me for the World Championships I will be in good shape.”
There was also a win for Katie Taylor, as she comprehensively defeated Holland’s Vandellen Willeke, however her compatriot Sinead Kavanagh lost out to another Dutch boxer: Fontyn Nouchka.
Unseeded Open Elite Competition National Stadium, Dublin
52Kg: M Conlon (St John Bosco) beat R Dalton (Holy Trinity) 15-8
56Kg: T McCullagh (Holy Family GG) beat D Coughlan (St Anne’s) 8-4
60Kg: David O Joyce (St Michael’s Athy) beat M O’Hara (Holy Trinity) 15-5
60Kg: K Taylor (Ireland) beat V Willeke (Holland) 22-4
64Kg: R Hickey (Grangecon) beat S Upton (Holy Family) 19-12
69Kg: R Sheehan (St Michael’s Athy) beat M O’Reilly (Portlaoise) 14-10
75Kg: F Nouchka (Holland) beat S Kavanagh (Ireland) 17-10
75Kg: J Quigley (Finn Valley) beat S O’Reilly (Twintowns) 23-16
81Kg: D Joyce (Ballinacargy) beat P O’Shea (Sunnyside) 17-3
91Kg: K Egan (Neilstown) beat S Ward (Monkstown, Antrim) 13-5
97Kg+: C Sheehan (Clonmel) beat S Turner (Drimnagh) 17-7
Victorious Egan shows he is a match for the heavyweights
HAVING ANNOUNCED THAT he would be making the transition from light-heavyweight to heavyweight last week, Ken Egan allayed any doubts that he would be unable to compete at this level by winning at the Unseeded Open Elite Competition on Saturday.
Egan felt that his 13-5 victory in the heavyweight final over Stephen Ward, a silver medallist at the 2010 Commonwealth Games, would be enough to secure his place at the AIBA World Championships and Olympic qualifiers in Azerbaijan.
The boxer told reporters that despite carrying a hand injury, he was raring to go:
Meanwhile, former European Union Championships gold medallist, Roy Sheehan, secured a 14-10 win over Michael O’Reilly in the welterweight final.
Commenting on the victory, he said:
There was also a win for Katie Taylor, as she comprehensively defeated Holland’s Vandellen Willeke, however her compatriot Sinead Kavanagh lost out to another Dutch boxer: Fontyn Nouchka.
Unseeded Open Elite Competition National Stadium, Dublin
On song: 5 Manny Pacquiao hits of a different kind>
IABA U-turn on controversial World Championship “box-off”
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Fontyn Nouchka Katie Taylor Ken Egan Roy Sheehan Sinead Kavanagh Stephen Ward Winning