Glory for Gráinne as Offaly trio win national titles
On a landmark night in her boxing journey, Tullamore’s Gráinne Walsh delivered a performance for the ages last Saturday, defeating current world champion Amy Broadhurst to claim the 66kg National Elite title in Dublin.
Walsh’s win resonated across the Irish sporting world, but it was just one of three national titles claimed by Offaly representatives on a fantastic night for boxing in the county.
Earlier on Saturday, two boxers from the St Carthage’s club in Rahan, were both crowned national champions.
Nicole Buckley, a student teacher in DCU, defeated Ciara Walsh (Smithfield) on a 4-1 decision in the 48kg final, while, in the men’s, there was glory for Paul Loonam of St Carthage’s who beat Sean Purcell (Saviours Crystal) on a unanimous 5-0 decision in the 57kg decider.
“It is a huge honour for our club to have two boxers at the very top of Irish boxing,” the St Carthage’s club stated in a social media post afterwards.
The final between Gráinne Walsh, of the Spartacus club, and Dundalk’s Amy Broadhurst was in the ultra-competitive 66kg division, which is one of the weight classes for the Olympic Games in Paris next year.
A defeat for Walsh on Saturday would probably have put her dream of making the Olympics out of reach. And her preparations were less than ideal, given that she broke a baby toe last month and had to undergo surgery on it just weeks out from the national finals.
Amid such a challenging backdrop, she delivered a brilliant display of controlled aggression. The Offaly woman landed the cleaner punches in the first round, but was briefly knocked off balance by a strong left hand from Broadhurst early in the second.
She recovered to dominate the latter stages of the second round, making her strength tell against Broadhurst, who was moving up in weight class.
A terrific final round also saw Walsh on top, making particularly effective use of her uppercut.
The only surprise about the verdict was the closeness of the 3-2 split decision - but when Walsh’s hand was rightly raised in victory, the relief and jubilation propelled her several feet into the air!
“I’ve been wondering what would actually top that feeling,” she told the Offaly Independent this week. “An Olympic medal obviously would top it, but, given the circumstances, it was a feeling that I hope to keep with me forever.”
The 27-year-old said her performance on Saturday was “definitely” the best display of her career to date.
“I always knew I was capable of that. I’ve showed it many times in sparring and in the gym, but to show it on the big stage, for the biggest prize, against such as incredible opponent as Amy, and especially with the injury history that I’ve had, really topped it all off.
“Everything worked out on the night as I had hoped, thankfully, but it’s only the first piece of a large puzzle. I’m on the first rung of the ladder now and I’m looking forward to climbing up.”
She said the vocal support she had in the National Stadium on Saturday made the night extra special.
“I had loads of supporters in Dublin, my cousins from Killeigh and Portlaoise, and then all of my family and a few of my friends from Tullamore. It just drives you on so much.
“They all know what I’ve been through as well, so to have them cheering me on, and especially afterwards to share the moment with them, was something I’ll never forget.”
While there is still a tough road to be travelled in order to make Paris, the win on Saturday means that Walsh’s hopes of reaching the Olympics remain alive.
“Being the number one in the country puts us in a great position to be the favourite to be selected for the (Olympic) qualifiers, but it’s far from done yet,” she said.
“I still have to keep the head down, the eyes on the prize, and not take any backward step at all. But I’m looking forward to what’s to come.”