Conor Quinn – “When the championships come round there’ll be no excuses”

Normally with most Irish squads there is a recognisable chorus of Belfast accents throughout. However, there is just one Belfast boy over in Russia for the World Youth Championships next week.

Nevertheless, Conor Quinn is cut from the same cloth as all the Belfast stars of recent years. An club-mate of 2015 World Amateur Champion Mick Conlan at Clonard ABC, Quinn brings the same gold medal confidence to the table like all the Titanic City titans.

The flyweight has returned to the Irish team following a frustrating period of injury for what will be his final underage tournament. Quinn has been enjoying preparations for the tournament in St Petersburg and described to Irish-Boxing.com how “it’s my first Youth championships and it’s my first World Championships, it’s a great experience. I’m feeling all good now, we’re getting the best of training, the camp’s been brilliant.”

“Being on this team with the rest of the lads is great for the confidence.”

This trip away in particular has a big tournament feel. Training camps in both Dublin and Belfast led into a major camp in Moscow with heavyweights such as Russia and Cuba.

Quinn praised the preparations for the nine-man team and cited how it could make a big difference come tournament time. He explained how “we’re being well looked after. We’re training with the Russians and Cubans, so when the championships come round there’ll be no excuses.”

“It’s great sparring with them, getting that mental edge over yourself and believing that you’re there for the gold medal.”