‘Noel is one of my best friends’
THERE was joy for St Mary’s Boxing Club in Tallaght and in particular coach Noel Burke who was mentioned by Kellie a number of times during interviews after her gold victory.
Kellie has been a member in St Mary’s for the past six years and her coach Noel has played a key role in her success.
“This is my great team of coaches, and we have Noel over here who is also my coach and is one of my best friends,” said Kellie Harrington after her win.
“I didn’t think he was going to be here today but it’s the best surprise,”.
Noel has played a huge role in promoting boxing in the community particularly at St Mary’s Boxing Club.
Noel, along with a team of coaches including Michael McDonald, Mel Leonard and Ciarán Bates, himself an Irish international boxer, laid the groundwork on which the success of Kellie and others was built.
Speaking with The Echo in the build up to the Paris Olympics Noel said: “I started boxing in 1977 and I’ve been coaching here at St Mary’s since I was eighteen.
“My dad, Noel Sr and a man named Johnny Riordan were coaches when I was coming up and eventually it became clear that they needed a hand, so I did a coaching course with the IABA (Irish Amateur Boxing Association), passed that and I’ve been here ever since.”
Noel’s day job is as a development officer with the IABA where one of his colleagues is Barcelona 1992 hero, Michael Carruth.
Explaining how Kellie joined St Mary’s in Tallaght Noel said: “Kellie was around twenty when I first saw her and she was sparring in a club in town.
“The girl she was sparring with was actually a French girl who had beaten Katie Taylor in a previous fight and Kellie was getting the better of her.
“I could see straight away how good she was, she was a natural and had the basics absolutely down.
“It was Kellie who actually approached us about joining the club.
“Our set up was ideal for her and she soon became a valued member of St Mary’s.
“The important thing to remember about Kellie is that her boxing talent and her medal count pale into insignificance when compared to what an amazing human being she is.
“She’s obviously a huge inspiration to all of our members but she always has time for everyone, and she does so much good work for people that nobody would even know about.
“She’s one of a kind and has no airs or graces about her. What you see is what you get with Kellie, and from our point of view, she’s always been very easy to coach which is great.”
