Amy Broadhurst and Lisa O’Rourke, both former world champions, find their Olympic dreams dashed after the Irish Athletic Boxing Association (IABA) has decided against affording them a final opportunity to qualify for the Paris Olympics.
Despite Broadhurst's glittering amateur career, which includes world, European, and Commonwealth titles won in 2022, the decision has left her devastated and frustrated: "I wouldn’t have an issue if I had been given a fair opportunity," Broadhurst said.
"In my head, I was supposed to be at the Olympics."
It was widely anticipated that both Broadhurst and O’Rourke, would be back in contention in the welterweight division for an Olympic qualification spot. However, while driving home after a squad training on Wednesday, 20 March 2024, Broadhurst received a call from IABA High Performance director Tricia Heberle explaining that neither she nor O’Rourke would be assessed.
Fellow boxer Grainne Walsh narrowly missed out on an opportunity to qualify in the 66kg weight division just over a week ago after she suffered a controversial defeat against Poland's Aneta Rygielska at the qualification tournament in Italy. Walsh, who defeated the unbeaten Broadhurst 3-2 in the 66kg division at nationals last year, has been selected for the Irish team heading to the final qualification Olympic tournament in Bangkok in May.
Broadhurst and O’Rourke were informed that there would not be a box-off between the two of them and Walsh, but there would be an assessment for the number two position between Broadhurst and O'Rourke in the 66kg weight division, with the winner going to the upcoming European Championships in Serbia in April.
Broadhurst has since informed the IABA that she won’t be participating in the box-off with O’Rourke.
“As soon as she (Tricia Heberle) said that, I got upset. I respect myself too much as a boxer to fight for the number two position,” Broadhurst said.
“I thought and so did Lisa (O’Rourke) that there would be an assessment and all three of us would be given a chance. I have a message on my phone saying that Zauri (Anita, Ireland’s Head Coach) wanted me to be fit and my weight right by March 22. I went and did that, and, in my head, I believed I would be assessed for the Olympic tournament."
“I beat the Polish girl (that Walsh lost to in Italy) last year and given my world ranking and my performance at the Strandja tournament last year, I believed I would give it a good run. But it seems they had their minds made up. Zauri had not seen me train for a long time until I did some pad work with him last Tuesday. Whatever their selection policy is, I think it is impossible to base your opinion on the basis of one session,” she said.
The contention to see who would represent Ireland in the welterweight weight division (66kg) has been a long journey. According to Broadhurst, the High-Performance Unit (HPU) had given her assurance three years ago that she would have the chance to compete for Ireland at her preferred weight of 60kg following the Tokyo Games. However, Kellie Harrington's gold medal win in Tokyo and her decision to defend the title in Paris left Broadhurst with no choice but to transition to the next weight division, 63kg. Despite this adjustment, the super lightweight category is not recognized as an Olympic weight class, forcing Broadhurst to compete as a welterweight in pursuit of her Olympic aspirations.
In 2023, Walsh made a comeback from a hand injury to narrowly defeat Broadhurst 3-2 in the 66kg division at nationals. O’Rourke, who was also entered in the 66kg weight division but had previously won world light middleweight (70kg) gold, would have possibly also faced Broadhurst or Walsh at nationals but she withdrew her name ahead of the championship (possibly due to injury but this was never confirmed).
O'Rourke had the option of going up a division to middleweight (75kg) instead but had mentioned that she did not want to box against her older sister, Tokyo Olympian and European gold medalist, Aoife.
Broadhurst went on to beat Walsh in a private assessment bout, giving her a chance to qualify for the Olympics at the European Games. However, her journey hit a setback when she narrowly lost to the UK's Rosie Eccles in a split decision last summer. Subsequently, Broadhurst faced a period of recovery after sustaining an injury, causing her to miss the 2024 IABA Elite Championship, where Lisa O'Rourke was also absent due to injury.
It has been a hot topic for months on whether or not Broadhurst would turn pro after the Olympics, but given the HCU's decision, it may be that her amateur days have come to an end.
"It’s been my whole life to try and get to the Olympics," she said. "So for me, everything I’ve put in over the last 22 years, it just feels like it’s been blown away. Like it’s for nothing, really."
Lisa O'Rourke has yet to make a public comment on the subject.
