Turkish delight as Ward and Joyce close in on Olympics

European light-heavyweight champion Joe Ward got Ireland’s campaign off to a flying start on the opening day of the final Olympic qualifiers for European male boxers in Trabzon, Turkey yesterday.

The 18-year-old World number three hammered Sweden’s Kennedy Katende 16-6 to set up today’s last-16 clash with Turkey’s Bahran Muzaffer at the Hari Gur venue. Katende, who was beaten by Ireland’s Ken Egan in the final of the 2008 Olympic qualifiers in Athens, was 8-3 down going into the last frame of yesterday’s 81kg preliminary.

If Ward reaches the light-heavyweight final he will qualify for the London Olympics but he can also qualify if he reaches the semi-finals and is beaten by the eventual gold medallist.