Nevin qualifies for Olympics, but Joyce loses out
John Joe Joyce's attempt to secure Olympic qualification ended in disappointment today after he was beaten by experienced Romanian light welterweight Ionut Gheorghe in Pescara, Italy.
Following an epic battle on the Adriatic coast, Joyce, from the St Michael's Athy club, was five points adrift (25-20) when the bell rang for the end of the fourth and final round.
Earlier today, Cavan bantamweight John Joe Nevin booked his ticket for the Beijing 2008 Olympics following a thrilling 32-16 semi-final win against Ukrainian Maksym Tretyak in Pescara.
Tretyak was ahead at the end of the second round, but 19-year-old Nevin, from the Cavan Boxing club, staged yet another stunning fightback to claim victory by a 16-point margin (Nevin v Tretyak: Scores at end of first three rounds: 4-4,9-11,24-14. Final score: 32-16).
Irish captain Ken Egan will meet Ramazan Magamedau in his light heavyweight semi final at around 5.30pm this afternoon.
Boxers winning their semi final bouts in Pescara today automatically qualify for the 2008 Olympics.
Semi Final Results Friday February 29:
54Kg:John Joe Nevin (Ireland) beat Maksym Tretyak (Ukraine) 32-16
64Kg: John Joe Joyce (Ireland) lost to Ionut Gheorghe (Romania) 20-25
81Kg: Ken Egan (Ireland) Ramazan Magamedau (Belarus)
(Boxers winning their semi final bouts will qualify automatically for the 2008 Olympics)
Final Draw March 1:
54Kg: John Joe Nevin (Ireland) v Veaceslav Gojan (Moldovia) or Rustamhodza Rahimov (Germany).
