Oakleaf’s Carly Irving hails her silver medal success in Sofia – Derry Sega

Carly Irving was given a hero’s welcome when she returned home from the European Under-23 Championships in Bulgaria after a stunning silver medal success.

In a year in which she had already created history by winning the U22 48kg national title in Dublin, following up her U18 national title and her Ulster Elite title, Carly achieved this final milestone in a tournament that required competitors to play without protective equipment.

This stipulation, announced just before the team left Dublin, added an unexpected twist to the contest but was little more than an additional hurdle for the talented Oakleaf ABC boxer to break through.

“She’s actually the first girl in Europe to box without a guard,” Oakleaf trainer Eugene O’Kane explained. “They found out just before they left Dublin for Sofia that they wouldn’t be wearing protective gear. So obviously she was the first girl in the ring and she’s the first Irish girl that they boxed without a guard. It was a little weird for her and a lot of the girls there got cuts. More girls get cuts than boys because obviously they’re not used to getting hit on the head and stuff.

Irving, just 18 years old, went up against experienced opponents, demonstrating his extraordinary skill and determination. She cruised through the competition with notable wins, including dominant performances against boxers from Azerbaijan and Hungary. In the final she faced a rough and tumble opponent from Turkey and despite being cut in the first round she performed remarkably

“We don’t have many senior medalists in boxing at the European and world level. This is the next step to the elites; she actually won the elites. I am so proud of her for this performance. She is definitely one for the future. It was a brilliant performance.”

Irving’s dedication and hard work is evident, with months of intensive training at the High-Performance center in Abbotstown in Belfast. As she considers her next steps, including the upcoming Irish and Ulster Elites, it’s clear her journey is far from over.

“It’s a great thing,” O’Kane continued. “She won the under-18s and then went on and won the under-22s, won the Ulster elite, along with Jack Harkin, and then won a lovely silver medal against a very, very good girl from Turkey who was beaten last year in the final.

“She was a very experienced opponent. She’s 22 and Carly is only 18. She had two good wins. She did great against a little girl from Azerbaijan, which is a great boxing nation. Then she beat a girl from Hungary also 3:0 and was an absolute dominator. She stayed in the center of the ring and never put a foot wrong. Then she faced this little one from Turkey in the final, very rough and using all her tactics. Carleigh was cut in the first round and it affected the fight.