Jack Marley: 'I’m an athlete going to the Olympic Games. Of course I’m aspiring for gold'

As others chase their Olympic boxing dream, Jack Marley is sitting pretty.

SITTING PRETTY: Irish heavyweight boxer Jack Marley is focusing on his training as others attempt to qualify for the Olympics next week. Picture: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

This next month will bring the Olympics into finer focus for a whole raft of Irish contenders. Stick a pin in a world map and you probably won’t be far removed from a badminton player, a triathlete, a cyclist, a boxer or a track and field athlete pushing for Paris.

An eight-strong boxing team, made up of three women and five men, will land in Milan on Thursday and take the 20-minute spin east to the town of Busto Arsizio where the latest qualifying tournament gets underway at the weekend.