Lightweight world champion Kellie Harrington has secured herself at least a bronze medal at the European Games after a 4-1 split decision win over Irma Testa (ITA).
Harrington looked sharp in her win with some nice combinations and she will now progress to the semi-finals where she has a chance of following her gold medal win in New Delhi in 2018.
Another medal guaranteed for @TeamIreland as @Kelly64kg beats Irma Testa (ITA) to secure at least a Bronze at #Minsk2019. #TeamIreland https://t.co/6oflXQgYoG
— eir Sport (@eirSport) June 26, 2019
Harrington won a silver medal at the AIBA World Women’s Elite Championships in Kazakhstan in 2016 before dropping a weight class to 60kg and winning gold for Ireland at the 2018 edition of the event in November, becoming the first Irish boxer to win medals in two different weights at that level in the process.
She has managed to successfully couple her boxing career with her work at St. Vincent’s Hospital as a nurse and she told Dion Fanning on Ireland Unfiltered earlier this year that she’d still work in medicine even if she made millions from boxing.
“It’s a brilliant place to work, it’s a brilliant getaway and I think every athlete needs something to take them away from their sport cause you can’t go on 24/7 thinking about boxing.
People are like ‘and you’re still working?’ You know, I’m not a millionaire, I haven’t won the lotto or anything like that like or, you know, even if I did I’ll still keep working until I get told that I’m not allowed work on that ward that I work on anymore.
They don’t understand how much they (staff and patients at the hospital) mean to me, you know what I mean? And they mean a lot to me.”
