High-Performance Director Tricia Heberle insists the qualification of a record-equaling 10 boxers to the Paris Olympics justifies the IABA’s selection policy. Selection with regard to International tournaments and Olympic qualifiers are always a thing of huge debate. However, discourse reached new levels in the current cycle, firstly around the selection of Jennifer Lehane and Aidan Walsh, who were selected ahead of the reigning Irish champions at their weight on different occasions, but more so around Amy Broadhurst.
After not being chosen at 66kgs, the Dundalk fighter defected to Team GB where she unsuccessfully attempted to qualify at lightweight. On the other hand Grainne Walsh got over the line in impressive fashion at 66kgs and that aligned with the fact Aidan Walsh and Lehane also became boxing Olympians proves the right selection calls were made suggests, Heberle. “We don’t hide away from the fact that it has been quite challenging around selection, we’ve had criticism and obviously there have been individual athlete agendas that have been at play,” she said to media on Monday morning.
“We tried to manage that professionally and to never lose sight of what is important and that is the athletes that are in front of us that are doing the right things and that we believe can deliver under pressure. “I think the decisions we made around the athletes that could qualify in this sort of team size were absolutely correct and I feel there’s no defence warranted.