By IABA Press Officer Bernard O’Neill
THE countdown to the 2014 Youth Olympics Nanjing, China in August has begun.
Ciara Ginty, Christina Desmond and Michael Gallagher will represent Ireland at the Games.
Ireland’s Ryan Burnet claimed gold at the inaugural Youth Olympics in Singapore in 2010 after beating Azerbaijan’s Salman Alizade 13-6 in the light-flyweight final.
The win ensured that the Belfast light-fly was the first ever Youth Olympics boxing champion as the 49kg decider against Alizade, who had beaten Burnett in the AIBA World Youth final in his native Azerbaijan a few months prior to their rematch in Singapore, was the first final on the program on August 25th, 2010.
Joe Ward also competed in the 2010 Youth Olympics, but the Irish southpaw was beaten 4-2 by Australia’s Damien Hooper, who he’d beat in the AIBA World Youth middleweight final in Azerbaijan. Ward broke his hand in the first round of the Olympic Youth clash with Hooper.
