Jack Marley Turns Olympic Pain Into World Championship Motivation
Jack Marley is using his Olympic disappointment to drive a World Championship glory bid.
The 22-year-old became Ireland’s first heavyweight Olympian since 1996 when he stepped through the Paris ropes last summer.
The underage starlet turned senior stalwart performed admirably but suffered defeat at the hands of Tajikistan’s Davlat Boltaev in the medal fight.
That reverse stung but the pain it summoned is proving motivation going into the World Championships, which glove off in Liverpool this weekend.
Continuing to shine a positive light on his Paris appearance the Monkstown BC man also points out he takes confidence from the entire Olympic experience.
“It was tough losing in the medal fight, just being so close to the podium,” said Marley, speaking to the press ahead of the trip to Liverpool. “But yeah, it was fuel to the fire and it was also just a realisation of where [I am] and what I can achieve.
“Obviously an immediate reaction of disappointment, but then once you sit back and take it all in and realise that, when you look at it as a Games as a whole and an Olympic cycle as a whole, I was happy on the outcome of the four years.
“It’s like any big tournament, you just need a short period just to reflect and recover and get ready to go again,” said Marley.
“I didn’t feel like I needed months off, but just enough time to relax and recover.
“It’s very easy because you’re in a bubble for so long and then when you’re out of the bubble, it just takes a few days to come around. But you’re back with your friends and your family and you’re back seeing everyone and that’s the best part of it.”
Marley has added to the Irish title collection, won a National Elite contest,and competed in Sofia since last Summer, so he got back on the horse in that regard. The popular Sallynoggin talent fine-tuned things in an International sparring camp last week and says he has no plans to fix what isn’t broke.
“We’re just back yesterday off a ten-day camp in Sheffield with GB and ten different countries, so I think I’ve had the best preparation I could, and all I have to do now is perform.
“We got to where we are from how we have always boxed,” added Marley, when asked if he was trying to change any aspect of his fighting approach. “I might come across [as an aggressive boxer] because I might be matched up with a guy of a different style, and that’s how I have to fight that fight. But I see myself as a versatile boxer.”
A well-supported team, Ireland should expect an extra loud following for World Boxing’s debut World Championships, considering it will play out in Liverpool, not that that will influence Marley any. The young but experienced Dub sees bigger advantages in fighting close to home.
“The support doesn’t really bother me, but the two main positives are the same climate and the same time difference, which is a blessing. We don’t have to really climatise in either time or weather which is great. So it’s just like boxing in Ireland.”
