IABA ‘extremely pleased’ Kellie Harrington remains amateur

The Irish Athletic Boxing Association were ‘extremely pleased’ to be informed Kellie Harrington will remain amateur.

The Olympic gold medal winner has been linked with a move to the pro ranks in recent weeks but confirmed, on last night’s Late Late Show, that she had turned down offers from promoters in favour of remaining in the High-Performance unit.

As a result, Paris 2024 and a second Olympic medal and not world titles become the focus.

Speaking on the Late Late Harrington said: “I’ve made the decision, I’m going to stay amateur. It’s not always about money.

“That’s what people are saying – ‘You can make a fortune out of this, you can go for that fight, you can go for this fight’ and what have you. I just want to be amateur.

“I’m very happy. I’m supported by Team Ireland and I have a great team with the set-up.

“Less stress, more success.”

“Less stress, more success”

Wise words from Olympic hero Kellie Harrington on why she won’t be turning pro. (Whilst getting a lift from Ryan and managing to keep a straight face 😂) #LateLate | @Kelly64kg pic.twitter.com/7ozMejgPSi

— The Late Late Show (@RTELateLateShow) September 3, 2021

The IABA released a statement on Saturday welcoming the decision and revealed they worked hard with Sports Ireland to make reamaing amateur an attractive option for the Dub.

CEO of the IABA, Fergal Carruth aslo stated the decision shows the 32-year-old has faith in IABA and the High Performance.

The statement reads as follows:

The Irish Athletic Boxing Association (IABA) are extremely pleased at this weekend’s announcement by Olympic gold medallist, Kellie Harrington, that she will remain in the amateur ranks and work with the IABA High-Performance programme towards
the Paris 2024 Summer Olympic Games cycle.

Since the culmination of the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympic Games, the IABA High performance team has worked in tandem with Sport Ireland in order to create a pathway to assist Kellie Harrington to remain in the amateur ranks with the goal to qualify for and defend her Olympic
title at the Paris 2024 Games.

Kellie made the announcement on last night’s [Friday, September 3rd] Late Late Show on RTÉ. Speaking about the news, CEO of the IABA, Fergal Carruth stated: “All of us at the IABA are thrilled that Kellie is staying in our High-Performance unit for the Paris 2024 Summer Olympic
Games cycle. Kellie has been an inspiration for people across the country this summer, and we are delighted to have worked hand-in-hand with Sport Ireland to ensure that we could design a programme that worked effectively for Kellie to continue to achieve her goals. Her
announcement demonstrates clearly Kellie’s commitment to the sport of boxing and her confidence in the IABA High-Performance Unit. We are extremely proud of our programme, and we are excited to see what Kellie can do over the coming years with the support of the
IABA and Sport Ireland.”