Boxer in last-ditch appeal to secure Olympics spot

Irish fighter Joe Ward has launched a sensational bid to secure a spot at the Olympic Games.

With less than 48 hours to the opening ceremony, Ward and his coach Eddie Bolger took a case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

National light-heavyweight champion Ward failed to qualify after controversially losing to Turkish boxer Bahran Muzaffer in Turkey.

Numerous appeals to international boxing chiefs fell on deaf ears but Ward and Bolger have opted for one final push to make the Games.

Olympic Council of Ireland president Pat Hickey last night said: “I would love to see Joe Ward in the Games. He is a great young athlete and there is not a doubt that the decision made against him in Turkey had great question marks over it. But knowing my experience of appeals it had to happen at that time (Turkey) while it was fresh and hot. It is hard to see how it will go given how much time has gone by.”