Athy boxer John Joe Joyce has made all of Athy very proud as he set off for the Olympics this week. John Joe, who is a member of St. Michael's boxing club and four other Irish boxers will be competing for an Olympic medal in this years Olympics in Beijing in August. He will carry the flag for Athy town in Beijing. John Joe has already left for Beijing and was given a great send off last Friday in SAthy GAA Club.
Joyce, along witht he rest of the boxing squad, will spend three days in Beijing before travelling to Vladivostok, Russia, for a training camp before flying back to the Olympic village on August 6. Coaches Billy Walsh, a former Irish Olympian and seven-times Irish senior champion, and Zuar Antia, a three-times Georgian senior champion, will be working the Irish squad's corner.
Writing in his online diary on irish-boxing.com Joyce spoke of the day he found out the date he would be boxing:
The big thing that happened this week was I got my date for the first day of competition out in Beijing. I’ll be fighting on August 10 and the boxing starts properly the day before that. I wasn’t nervous at all when I got told the date.
It sounds like Joyce is taking it all in his stride. Best of luck on the 10th John.