Egan fights on to take a seat for Fine Gael

After eight punishing rounds, more than a few ring-side pep talks, and what effectively amounts to a technical knockout, Olympic boxing hero and Fine Gael candidate Kenny Egan scraped over the line to gain a seat on South Dublin County Council.

The silver medallist from Beijing 2008 and his running mate, Emer Higgins, took home the final positions in the eight-seat constituency just after 1.30pm on Sunday, after 24 hours of a gruelling contest that at one stage looked likely to end in double failure.

Running in the Clondalkin electoral area, the celebrity candidate — who in February infamously said his newfound party was “probably using me” and claimed he didn’t care what party he represented — saw other parties surge ahead.