LOCAL boxers have been dealt a severe blow following the recent announcement by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) that boxing will be omitted from the initial sports list at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, USA.

This will come as a severe blow to the many up-and-coming boxers from Belfast and throughout Ireland who have made their names at the Games in the past, such as Michael Conlan who made his name in the 2012 Olympics and Paddy Barnes who won Bronze in 2008 and 2012. 

In Tokyo, brother and sister Aidan and Michaela Walsh competed with Aidan winning bronze, while St Paul’s man Brendan Irvine captained the team. 

“Today’s announcement that Boxing has been left off the sports list for the 2028 Olympics is of great concern,” said Antoinette McKeown, CEO of Sport NI.

“As well as peak physical fitness, the discipline, confidence and determination boxing instills, provides our young people with huge life skills, often seeing the greatest impact in communities of highest social deprivation. 

“From Wayne McCullough, Paddy Barnes, Michael and Jamie Conlan, and our most recent medalist Aidan Walsh, a pantheon of Olympians have inspired our young people for many generations and the Olympic Games is the pinnacle of those hopes and dreams. Without boxing at the Olympics young people are being stripped of the chance to achieve their life ambitions.

“Boxing has always broken down barriers, and in recent years its efforts to see women enter the ring has been hugely encouraging. We have outstanding role models such as Kellie Harrington – Olympic Gold medalist and Michaela Walsh - European, World and Commonwealth medalist, and Katie Taylor, who has gone on to break all records in women’s professional boxing. 

Sport NI has stated it will be rallying with Sport Ireland, the Irish Athletic Boxing Association, and both British and Irish Olympic Federations to fight for boxing’s representation at the international level in the Olympic Games and promised to try everything in their power to ensure Irish boxers had their chance to compete in 2028.

McKeown added: “Today’s announcement is certainly a body-blow, but together we must ensure boxing does not suffer a knock-out.”