BOXING:JOHN JOE NEVIN thanked his parents yesterday as he became the lone Irish boxer to advance through to the medal stages of the World Championships in Milan. Nevin's 7-5 win over Chinese fighter, Gu Yu, was the only bronze medal success story for Ireland.
Light-heavyweight Olympic silver medallist, Ken Egan, bowed out 17-9 after a disappointing fight against Frenchman, Abdelkader Bouhenia and Donegal welterweight, Willie McLaughlin, was also beaten 16-7 in his quarter-final against Russian southpaw Andrey Zamkovoy.
Nevin earned his bronze medal in a bout that began in cagey and tentative style which forced the referee to intervene. The Irish bantamweight, who was disappointed in not getting into the medals at the Beijing Olympics, then cleverly fought a tactical fight from distance and finally won 7-5 after his opponent was penalised two points in the second round.
Those two points proved the difference between earning bronze and going home empty-handed.
“This was the fight I planned for. It was like boxing myself in the mirror,” said Nevin afterwards.
“This was for my mother and father. They kept my head right after the Olympics. They looked after me really well.”
Yu indeed fought like Nevin, which made for the oddly passive bout in which the two largely stalked each other. Both fighters backed off as they waited for an opening and in the early exchanges it was only on the referee’s urging that they came forward. Just one point was scored in the first two minutes.
Nevin trailed 1-0 following the first round but then, tagging Yu in the second round, went to the final stretch with a healthy 5-2 lead. A quick point gave the Irishman a 6-2 advantage as the three minutes counted down and from there he backed off and kept well out of range from the advancing Yu.
The bronze medal is Ireland’s sixth at World Championship level and represents continuing success for Irish boxing at the elite level. The last World Championship medal was won by James Moore when the Championships were held in Belfast in 2001. It was Jim Moore senior, along with Billy Walsh, who tended Nevin between rounds yesterday.
The Cavan fighter advances to a contest for the silver medal on Friday afternoon, when he meets Russian Eduard Abzalmov. No Irish boxer has yet won silver at World Championship level. Nevin and Abzalmov have sparred each other in the past, so there will be little mystery between the two athletes.
Egan, however, allowed the contest run away from him in the second round, which he lost 7-1 after finishing the round first level at 3-3. With too much ground to make up in the third and final three minutes, the Neilstown fighter went out tamely 17-9.
“This is my first major championships since Beijing. I am very disappointed but it is not the end of me by a long shot,” said a philosophical Egan. “I’ll still be campaigning for Korea (World Championships) in two years time.”
Officials in amateur boxing’s international governing body, the AIBA, have dismissed newspaper reports that Belfast Olympic bronze medallist, Paddy Barnes, might receive a further ban from boxing. The Belfast fighter was sent home by the Irish team after a display of petulance when he was beaten earlier in the competition.
The AIBA have said that the punishment of being sent home was sufficient and denied any claims that he would be open to any further sanctions.
Turin details
Bantamweight: J J Nevin (Ire) bt Yu Gu (China) 7-5.
Welterweight: W McLoughlin (Ire) lost to A Zamkovoy (Rus) 16-7.
Light heavyweight: K Egan (Ire) lost to A Bouhenia (Fra) 17-9.
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