Carruth sees Paris or Taylor among possibilities for Harrington

IRELAND’S first ever Olympic boxing champion Michael Carruth believes the country’s latest gold medallist, Kellie Harrington has the potential to defend her crown in Paris in three years’ time or perhaps set her sights on success in the pro ranks and a possible clash with compatriot Katie Taylor.

The 31-year-old Harrington from St Mary’s Boxing Club in Tallaght had the nation on its feet yesterday morning when she beat Brazil’s Beatriz Ferreira in the lightweight final in Tokyo and subsequently joined an exclusive group of Irish Olympic boxing gold medallists that includes Carruth and Taylor.

Now Greenhills man, Carruth, who pulled off one of the biggest shocks in amateur boxing when he beat Juan Hernández Sierra of Cuba for the Olympic welterweight crown 29 years to the day that Harrington went top of the podium in Tokyo, insists age may not prove a deterrent for the Portland Row jewel with the next Games only three years away.

Kellie Harrington avoids a shot from Beatriz Ferreira of Brazil during their Olympic lightweight final in Tokyo yesterday. Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

“I think it’s like this” he told The Echo. “Kellie’s got three choices in her life, the way I look at it.

“One is that she could retire from boxing and none of us want that, but she’s put in a long struggle over the last number of years she’s been in boxing.

“She’s done everything. She’s won European medals, she’s won the Worlds and she’s now won the Olympics.

“The next option would be that she stays as an amateur and she goes and tries to defend her title in three year’s time in Paris.

Kellie Harrington of St Mary’s Boxing Club in Tallaght celebrates with her Olympic gold medal. Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

“It’s not too far away now. Four years is a different ball game, three years, that’s manageable. She’ll be 34.

“And look at that woman, Mira Potkonen who fought the Brazilian Ferreira in the semi finals in Tokyo.

“She beat Katie Taylor in Rio and now she’s going home from Tokyo with a bronze medal in her pocket at 40 years of age. Age is but a number sometimes.

“So Kellie could go and defend her title in Paris, or the next option is that she could turn professional. And now remember she’s in Katie Taylor’s weight.

“I’m not saying this is going to happen, but it’s nice to think it could.

“And with restrictions being lifted and hopefully in two or three years if things get back to normal and if Katie’s still fighting and Kellie has turned pro, if ever those trains should meet. Put it this way, I think we’d get a full house. And I mean Croke Park, not the National Stadium.

“Look, Kellie’s going to be bombarded by journalists, sponsors and the like over the next two or three days when she gets home.

“Maybe she could go on a little holiday and get away from it all for a few days if she has to.

“This ain’t going to go away. She’s an Olympic champion and when you’re an Olympic champion, it’s forever” he smiled.

Certainly Carruth was hugely impressed by the performance of the 2018 World champion in yesterday’s decider, telling The Echo “I thought her performance was superb. That’s the only word I can use. It was superb.

“Although she lost the first round 3-2, and I didn’t think she lost it, it wasn’t a disaster. It wasn’t a 4-1 or 5-0. If it was any of those two, then we were in a bit of bother.

“She just stuck to the same game plan, but then changed it in the second half of the second round and that’s what great boxers can do. They find a way to win and she did.

“She was switch-hitting, she was doing orthodox, southpaw. Ferreira didn’t know if she was going to get a left hook or a right hook. And she won the second round according to all five judges.

“A little bit of pressure was taken off her then and a little bit more went on to the Brazilian and so she started getting a little bit irritable and you can understand that.

“But Kellie boxed the perfect fight and that’s not easy out there. She had four fights, all going the distance over eight or ten days” he said.

Some 29 years may have separated the gold medal exploits of both Carruth and Harrington, but the Drimnagh Boxing Club coach pointed to many of the astonishing parallels in what both fighters  experienced.

“She boxed every day that I boxed and we were both the last to fight” he said.

“I was the last one of the Irish team to fight and she was the last of the Irish boxers to fight. She was the team captain, I was the team captain.

“She won the bronze medal on the 3rd of August, like I did. She won the silver medal on the 5th of August which I did. And it was the same date for our finals. I was 29 years champion yesterday.

“I beat a Thai boxer in my semi final and so did she.

“Her mother went out the back garden because she couldn’t watch the fight and my mam went up to the back bedroom not to watch the fight. And we’re both from Dublin.

“And do you know what I got from that? If it’s meant for you, you’re going to get it. It was meant for me and it was meant for her to get that medal.”