Amy Broadhurst plans to take European chance ahead of Olympic charge

Amy Broadhurst is not giving up on her Olympic dream and hopes to use the upcoming European Championships to prove that she is Toyko 2020 ready.

The Dundalk youngster boasts a glittering boxing CV and is deemed as one of Ireland’s stand-out underage amateur talents.

However, with only five Olympic weights open to females, Broadhurst’s Toyko ambitions are directly linked to reigning world amateur champion Kelly Harrington.

The two-time European under-22 champion entered the National Elite Championships in February at the non-Olympic weight of 64kgs in the belief that Harrington would be selected for international competitions at the weight regardless of who emerged victorious.

The Louth fighter was happy to pick up international experience at the non Olympic weight and set her sights on the 2024 Olympiad – but some verbal back-and-forths and a re-evaluation from Broadhurst means that a showdown between the pair at the 2020 Seniors this November is on the cards.

With Harrington not yet recovered from a thumb injury suffered at the European Games, Broadhurst has been given the opportunity to box at a major international at her optimum weight for the first time and she plans to impress.

Ahead of a crucial few months, the Dealgan southpaw believes a good performance in the European Championships, which glove off tomorrow in Madrid, can only help her qualification hopes.

“There is a long way too go for me but I’ll do everything I can to try and make the 2020 Olympics. It’s not over for me, nobody knows what will happen in the future so I’m just taking it one step at a time. I definitely have my eyes set on Tokyo, that’s the dream,” Broadhurst told Irish-Boxing.com before reflecting on European selection.

“I’m absolutely delighted to be picked, these are the sort of opportunities that I’ve been praying for so there would be something wrong if I wasn’t happy to be selected! It’s a massive opportunity for me, I have nothing to lose and everything to gain!

“I found out about five weeks ago, I’d just returned to training in Dublin when everyone got back from the European Games, Bernard [Dunne] called me in and sat down and had a chat with me and told me I had been selected for the Europeans at 60. I had to keep it quiet though as much as I wanted to tell everyone!”

Broadhurst has a host of underage medals, but a first senior International trinket would mean a lot to the ambitious fighter.

She was very unlucky not to get one in the World’s last year, losing out to the home fighter in a controversial quarter final fight.

A medal is the target this time around – but experience has taught the popular Dundalk fighter against looking to far ahead.

“Of course the target will be a gold medal, that’s what the aim is at every competition but of course the standard will be very very high so it’s about taking one fight at a time and performing to the best of my ability!”