Tributes have continued to flood in for Irish boxer Darren Sutherland (27), who died in tragic circumstances yesterday.
Sutherland, who won a bronze medal for Ireland at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, was found dead in his flat in Bromley, south London, by his manager Frank Maloney.
In a statement issued late last night, Pat Hickey, president of the Olympic Council of Ireland said that Sutherland will be sorely missed.
"In Beijing he was the life and soul of the Irish Olympic squad, a guy with a terrific personality and attitude. His Olympic colleagues enjoyed his irrepressible good humour and his keen interest in all of the various sports that Ireland participated in. He was simply a superb individual who had time for everyone," said Mr Hickey.
His sentiments were echoed by Irish Sports Council chief John Treacy, who described his death as a "terrible loss for the boxing fraternity".
"And most of all it's an incredible loss for the family, the mother and father and his sisters. It's incomprehensible how they will deal with this type of issue. We'll certainly miss him."
Joe Kirwan, former secretary and vice president of the Irish Amateur Boxing Association (IABA), told Newstalk radio: "The great thing about Darren was that he was extremely cheerful. Most people coming up to a major contest are on edge but Darren wasn't that type."
"Darren was an outgoing, gregarious individual who loved to joke, who loved to crack jokes. I would like to extend, to his father and mother, and his siblings, the sympathy of the Irish Amateur Boxing Association. The world is a poorer place today without Darren Sutherland."
Kirwan’s sentiments were echoed by Kenny Egan, who roomed with his fellow Dubliner on Irish trips as they both forged stellar careers in the amateur ranks.
"I am devastated at the sudden death of Darren,” Egan, a silver medalist in Beijing, said. “He was a great athlete, a close friend and a role model for any aspiring athlete. Darren was one of the hardest working and dedicated people I ever trained alongside
“I will always remember rooming with him on many of our international trips with the Irish team. My thoughts are with his family and friends."
Dominic O’Rourke, president of the Irish Amateur Boxing Association, said Sutherland’s death had impacted on his boxing colleagues. “He was such a popular young lad within the association. He talked to all the kids and they all loved him, "he said. “He always believed he would qualify for the Olympics and would win a medal, and he achieved it. He was a star of the show."
"He was strong and the ability he had meant he could have been world champion," O'Rourke said. "He was Darren, he had his mindset and nobody could say he couldn't do it."
Britain’s Olympic middleweight champion James DeGale, who beat Sutherland in Beijing, spoke of his shock at the Irishman’s death. “It is very, very sad news - I just can’t believe it,” he said.
“He was a big part of my Olympic medal journey, and it is just terrible. I just do not know what to say except that he was a brilliant fighter, in fact an excellent fighter, and he was a gentleman outside the ring as well."
Former Great Britain head coach Terry Edwards was DeGale's corner that day in Beijing and remembers Sutherland's sportsmanship in defeat as much as his ability in combat.
"He was such a respectful guy outside the ring," said Edwards today. "He had a great rivalry with James [DeGale]. When he lost to James in the Olympic semi-final he came straight over to the corner and shook our hands and told us we'd got our tactics right, and that was the mark of the man.”
A Metropolitan Police spokesman said Sutherland was pronounced dead at just after 3pm. His death is not being treated as suspicious.
It has been reported his manager, Mr Maloney, is in hospital after suffering a recent heart attack. According to the BBC, the promoter's spokesperson said he is sitting up in bed and working on his laptop. The timing of the heart attack is not known.
Sutherland, from the St Saviours ABC club in Dublin, first came to prominence to the non-boxing public during the Beijing games, when he became one of three Irish boxers to win a medal. Prior to that he had won national senior titles in 2005, 2006 and 2007 and also two European Union gold medals.
Sutherland, known in the ring as ‘‘The Dazzler’’, won the middleweight bronze medal along with Belfast’s Paddy Barnes, while fellow Dubliner, Kenny Egan, won silver in what was the best boxing team performance since Barcelona in 1992.
On returning to Dublin Sutherland announced that he was turning professional, which did not come as a surprise to the boxing fraternity as he had always stated that a world title had been an ambition of his since a child.
He was courted by a number of promoters as his run and media exposure in Beijing had given him a high profile. In October 2008, he came to an agreement with London promoter Mr Maloney to guide his career towards that coveted world title.
That decision meant that Sutherland moved from Dublin to London where he lived and trained under Maloney in the super middleweight division.
His first professional outing, however, was in Dublin City University in December 2008. It was a successful debut against Bulgarian Georgi Iliev, who was successfully stopped in the first round.
In a statement Sutherland's boxing promoter said: “It is very sad and unexpected. At this sad time my thoughts are with Darren’s family and I hope their privacy at this very difficult time will be respected by the media. It is a tragedy for Ireland and the world of boxing.”
Speaking on RTÉ radio last night, Olympic medal winner Michael Carruth said Sutherland's death was “a sad sad loss” for his family and boxing fans everywhere.
Mr Carruth said Sutherland had the style, the power and the charisma to make it to the top. “Everything that goes into making a top-class pro, he had the ingredients there and unfortunately we are never going to get to see this now”.
He said everyone knew that Sutherland was going to be the first of the Olympic team to go professional. “His amateur style was more suited to the pro style than anything else . . . it’s a sad, sad loss."