Tipperary boxer Ellie Mai Gartland competes at European championships in Italy
Former European champion included in ten-strong Irish team
Clonmel boxer Ellie Mai Gartland flew out to Italy on Tuesday to take part in the European Under 22 championships, which get underway today, Thursday.
The 19-year-old former European junior (Under 16) champion is part of a ten-strong Irish team and is one of just two women included, along with Kildare’s Niamh Earley.
“Ellie Mai has trained very hard and is in good form,” says Clonmel club coach Martin Fennessy.
“She answered the call and we wish her all the best,” he said.
Ellie Mai, who will compete in the lightweight division, has been preparing with the Irish team at the High Performance Unit in Abbotstown for the past two months.
She is the first Clonmel boxer to compete at these championships.
She is no stranger to success on the international stage, having won that European junior title in Anapa, Russia in 2018, when she received a hero’s welcome on her return home.
The championships will be held in the central Italian town of Roseto Degli Abruzzi. They are the first continental event of the year and the finals are scheduled for next Thursday, June 24.
Significantly, this is the first underage tournament in which Ireland is participating since the outbreak of the pandemic.
Teams were not sent to the 2020 European Youths or Juniors, or the 2021 World Youths.