Ireland will have three boxers competing in the semi-finals of the 17th Brandenburg Cup on Saturday.
Chris Nevin took the early route to victory at the 17th Brandenburg Youth Cup in Frankfurt/Oder, Germany tonight to guarantee himself at least a bronze medal from the 22-nation tournament.
The Holy Family BC (Drogheda) ace dramatically knocked out Denmark’s Fredrick Jensen 10 second into the first round to book his ticket into the semi-finals.
Keith Flavin and Hughie Nevin also claimed victories tonight to assure themselves of at least bronze, but there was last-eight disappointment for Kurt Walker, team captain David Roche, Stephen Mulholland and George Boylan.
Flavin, from the Paulstown BC in Kilkenny, scored an impressive 19-5 win over Poland’s Karol Judin, while Nevin, a cousin of 2012 Olympic silver medalist John Joe Nevin, beat Lithuania’s Ignas Kuodelis in a tough lightweight duel.
Walker gave a fine account of himself versus 2011 AIBA World Junior champion Bakchtovar Nazirov, the Russian flyweight emerging with just one point to spare from what Irish coach Billy McClean said was one of the bouts of the tournament.
Boylan lost out to Germany’s Melvin Perry, a silver medal winner at the 2011 AIBA World Junior Championships in Kazakhstan, while Mulholland lost 16-14 to Poland’s Michel Ostrowski.
Roche, who boxes out of the Riverstown BC in Cork, was beaten 18-15 by Lithuania’s Einitas Stanionis in the light-welterweight class.
The semi-finals will be decided tomorrow and the finals on Sunday.
Over 100 boxers are taking part in the tournament.
The Irish squad are building up toward the 2012 AIBA World Youth Championships in Thailand in October.
Billy McClean and Tom Hayes are working Ireland’s corner in Frankfurt/Oder.
17th Brandenburg Youth Cup Frankfurt/Oder, Germany
August 23rd
56kg: Chris Nevin (Holy Family (Drogheda) beat Craig McIntyre (Scotland) 13-6
60kg: Hughie Nevin (Cavan) beat Dmitri Ivanov (Estonia) 16-5
64kg: David Roche (Riverstown) beat Chris Forster (Germany 10-7
81kg: George Boylan (Drimnagh) beat Scott Forest (Scotland) 18-5
Q/Finals August 24th
49kg: Keith Flavin (Paulstown) beat Karol Judin (Poland) 19-5
52kg: Kurt Walker (Canal) lost to Bakchtovar Nazirov (Russia) 13-14
56kg: Chris Nevin (Holy Family Drogheda) beat Fredrick Jensen (Denmark) KO1
60kg: Hughie Nevin (Cavan) beat Ignas Kuodelis (Lithuania) 12-11
64kg: David Roche (Riverstown) lost to Einitas Stanionis (Lithuania) 15-18
70kg: Stephen Mulholland (St Malachys) lost to Michel Ostrowski (Poland) 14-16
81kg: George Boylan (Drimnagh) lost to Melvin Perry (Germany) 9-16
