Donegal boxer Roisin Hegarty seals place in European U15 final

Roisin Hegarty has booked a place in the final and upgraded to at least a silver medal at the European U15 Championships.

The Twin Towns Boxing Club lightweight overcame Ivana Kilci in her semi-final in Montenegro on Thursday afternoon.

Hegarty was handed a split decision victory, although the result never appeared in doubt after a fine performance by the Donegal teenager. 

Having stopped Mia Aleksa in her quarter-final bout last weekend, Hegarty had a bit of a wait to duck between the ropes again.

A co-captain of the Irish squad, Hegarty was in good fettle against Turkish opponent Kilci.

Behind a busy left jab, Hegarty set a good tone early on and was in front of the cards of judges from  Latvia, Montenegro, Hungary and Lithuania. The Danish judge, however, sided with Kilci in the opening round.

Both boxers were eager, but Hegarty did well to stay out of trouble and kept her own attacks frequent.

Midway through the second round, Hegarty cracked an eye-catching combination on Kilci. 

Well on her way heading for the third verse, Hegarty left nothing to chance and arrowed a powerful right paw onto Kilci’s cheek in the third round.

In her first bout in Montenegro, Hegarty stopped Aleska from Croatia in the third round and the Letterkenny teenager will now fight for gold on Saturday.

Earlier this year, Hegarty - who was beaten in a quarter-final at the 2024 European Schoolgirls Championships in Bosnia & Herzegovina - won the Irish U15 64kgs title at the National Stadium.

A student at Loreto Secondary School, Hegarty defeated Jessica Flanagan from Belfast in the final having won the Girl 1 51kgs title in 2023 and adding the Girl 2 57kgs and Junior Cadet 60kgs crowns in 2024.

She lives in Letterkenny and is the daughter of Raymond Hegarty and Norma Tembo.

This European U15 Championships is the inaugural championships held by World Boxing’s European confederation, European Boxing.

This is the 17th medal won by a Donegal boxer at European level with Steven O’Reilly from Twin Towns Boxing Club winning the first, the 68kgs gold at the European Schoolboys in 2004.

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The others are: Jason Quigley (Finn Valley ABC) won European Elite, U22 and Youth gold medals in 2013, 2012 and 2009; Tyrone McCullagh (Illies Golden Gloves) took bronze at the 2010 Elites; Cathal McMonagle (Letterkenny, fighting out of Holy Trinity) and William McLaughlin (Illies Golden Gloves) won EU Championships silver in 2007 and 2009; Maeve McCarron (Carrigart) and Leah Gallen (Raphoe) won Youth bronzes in 2013 and 2019; while Gallen won a European Junior bronze in 2018; St Bridgets’ Clonmany man Paddy Harkin won European Cadet bronze in 2007; and there were European Schoolboy/girl bronze medals for Michael Gallagher (Finn Valley), Brett McGinty (St Johnston, fighting out of Oakleaf); Leon Gallagher (Finn Valley), Carleigh Irving (Illies Golden Gloves) and Thomas Ward (Ballyshannon, fighting out of Carrickmore) in 2010, ’12, ’13 and ’19.