Three Offaly boxers bidding to defend National Elite titles

Three Offaly boxers who won National Elite Titles in January of this year will be aiming to defend them when the 2024 National Elite Championships get underway shortly.

Nicole Buckley (48kg) and Paul Loonam (57kg) and Gráinne Walsh (66kg) each won national championships in their respective weight divisions on a memorable night for boxing in Offaly at the beginning of the year.

Buckley and Loonam both box out of the St Carthage’s club in Rahan, while Tullamore's Walsh is affiliated with the St Mary's club in Tallaght having previously boxed with her hometown club Spartacus.

The IABA today announced the entry list for what's sure to be a hotly-contested 2024 National Elite Championships. The boxing will get underway from Wednesday next, November 1, and the finals will take place on Saturday, November 11.

The official competition draw will take place at 1pm tomorrow (Friday).

With the Paris Olympics less than a year away, Walsh's 66kg weight class is is laden with world class talent, making it arguably the most competitive weight division in Irish boxing.

In addition to the 28-year-old local woman, the National Elite entrants in the 66kg category are: Roscommon's Lisa O'Rourke, Amy Broadhurst, Christina Desmond and Kaci Rock.

Walsh defeated Broadhurst in the 2023 final in January, while O'Rourke outpointed Walsh on a split decision at the Leszek Drogosz Memorial tournament in Poland in September.