Michael Conlan and Joe Ward win and now chase golden finale

Olympic and World Elite bronze medallist Michael Conlan and Joe Ward booked tickets into their second European Elite finals in four years in Samokov, Bulgaria yesterday.

Conlan, the No. 1 seed who claimed a silver medal at the 2013 Europeans, beat Italian bantam Francesco Maietta, and Ward, the 2011 champion aged just 17, outclassed Croatian light-heavy Hrvoje Sep.

Ward, who is signed with AIBA Pro Boxing and who has never lost at European Elite level, can now become the first Irish male boxer to win two European Elite gold medals if he beats Dutch No. 2 seed Peter Mullenberg today.