Latest news with #BrayBoxingClub
Irish Times
3 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Times
Can Katie Taylor's former boxing club in Bray shake off its murder-scene stigma?
Olympic boxing coach Pete Taylor has claimed Wicklow County Council (WCC) removed all his belongings and equipment from Bray Boxing Club, materials which he values at €200,000, and has called the continued closure of the club a 'disgrace'. WCC, meanwhile, said it will be looking for expressions of interest this month from sports clubs wishing to lease the building. Included in his belongings, said Taylor, are personal Olympics memorabilia including tracksuits and his participation medal for the London Olympic Games in 2012, where he coached his daughter Katie to Ireland's first women's Olympic boxing gold medal. [ Katie Taylor's once home boxing gym in Bray is now lying sad and lonesome Opens in new window ] The building, on Bray seafront beside the harbour, has been closed since a fatal attack on June 5th, 2018, when a gunman entered the club during an early morning exercise class and opened fire. 'In 2018, a tragic criminal act occurred at the club, and I want to acknowledge the tragic loss of Bobby Messett,' said Taylor, who was also seriously injured in the attack. 'While I was recovering in hospital, Wicklow County Council changed the locks on the gym without notice and we were never given access again.' Victims of the shooting included Messett, who was killed, Taylor, and Ian Britton, who was shot in the leg. Gerard Cervi was found guilty of the murder by a unanimous verdict in 2023. The 36-year-old was sentenced to life in prison. No definitive motive was ever established for the murder of the 50-year-old father of three. Pete Taylor leaving the Central Criminal Court in 2021 after he gave evidence in the trial of Gerard Cervi for the murder of Bobby Messett at Bray Boxing Club in June 2018. Photograph: Collins Courts Since the incident, the doors of the boxing club have remained closed. 'What happened to this club and what continues to happen is more than a local dispute. It is a national disgrace,' said Taylor. 'A public-funded facility, awarded for Olympic achievement, has been taken from the very people who built it. 'Our contribution has been erased, our property seized and our questions ignored.' In an email, WCC declined to comment on the status of the boxing club, or whether boxing equipment has been removed from the premises and placed in a lock-up, as Taylor alleges. 'The building is in the ownership and control of Wicklow County Council and is currently unoccupied. Wicklow County Council District is inviting expressions of interest from any sports clubs who wish to lease the above facility for sporting purposes only,' WCC said in a statement. Bray Boxing Club was officially opened on January 28th, 2014, by the then minister of state for sport Michael Ring, and was grant-assisted by the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport and Bray Town Council. The club was upgraded following controversy after Katie's gold medal win in London, when it became common knowledge that the club had no toilet facilities for women, who were facilitated in the nearby Harbour Bar. Bray Boxing Club, Bray, Co Wicklow. Photograph Nick Bradshaw/The Irish Times Work got under way at the club in the summer of 2013, with a second storey and extensions added. Bray Town Council secured €190,000 in funding from the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport to fund the project, and invested €100,000 from its own resources. 'Expressions of interest will only be accepted from fully constituted, not-for-profit sports clubs playing sports that are recognised by the Irish Sports Council, and which are located in the Bray Municipal District area,' said the WCC's statement. 'Expression of interest along with further supporting documentation must be submitted to Bray Municipal District Offices, Civic Offices, Main Street, Bray, Co Wicklow, by 4pm on Friday 18th July, 2025.' Depending on the outcome of the expressions of interest, it is possible that the gym that once housed Katie Taylor may no longer be a boxing club. Now based in the US, she is a five-time amateur world champion, six-time European champion and, since turning professional after the Rio Olympic Games in 2016, a world champion at two different weights. She has lived in Connecticut since turning professional. She fights Amanda Serrano at Madison Square Garden on Friday night, topping an all-female bill at the famous New York venue. Adam Nolan, another Bray Boxing Club member who competed in the London 2012 games, was also coached by Pete Taylor. 'This is not about blame,' said Taylor. 'It is about truth and respect for what was built – not just for medals but the lives it changed.'
The Irish Sun
25-06-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
Home club of Irish boxer backed to medal at 2028 Olympics in danger of closing as ‘heartbroken' coach issues warning
THE home boxing club of 2024 Olympian Daina Moorehouse is in danger of closing its doors. Moorehouse, who 2 Daina Moorehouse's home boxing club is in danger of closing Credit: David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile 2 A general view of Bray Boxing Club Credit: Ramsey Cardy / SPORTSFILE The club does not have a dedicated premises of its own, however, and has been sharing with Enniskerry GAA Club for the last number of years. Enniskerry GAA recently invested in new equipment to bolster the club but which has limited space afforded to Enniskerry BC. While head coach Paul O'Toole stressed that they were not being pushed out, he revealed that he could have to close the doors unless an alternative premises is found. He told SunSport: "Enniskerry GAA club, they've been so good to us but they're after getting all new equipment, all new machines and stuff. Read More on Olympics "We have to take down the ring and take down the bags, most of the bags anyway. "They've housed us for the last six years, seven years and, you know what, we owe everything to them but look, at the end of the day, we need our own club. "We've been promised our own club years ago. Hasn't come true. We've been promised the Bog Meadow [in 2016], hasn't come true. "If we don't get a spot, I'm going to have to close the club." Most read in Boxing SunSport has contacted Enniskerry GAA Club for comment. Daina Moorehouse is likely to be among the top contenders to qualify for the 2028 Olympic Games. Jake Paul says WBC and WBA plan to rank him with victory over Julio Cesar Chavez Jr to set up controversial title shot The decorated flyweight romped her way to yet another National Elites title in Belfast, and was named Best Female Boxer. She is set to compete at the inaugural World Boxing Championships in Liverpool from September 4-14 this year. O'Toole believes Moorehouse will medal at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles if she gets there. But he revealed the 23-year-old is considering giving up the sport should Enniskerry Boxing Club be forced to close its doors. He added: "It's breaking my heart. "Daina, I hope she stays at boxing. She says she's going to give it up. She'll give it up and I'll tell you, Ireland and County Wicklow is going to lose a phenomenal young girl. "I know for a fact, she will medal at the next Olympics. "We need a club. 60/70 members and I'm turning away boxers, "It's not only Daina. We have other girls up there. I think we've at least eight to nine girls up there. And then all the lads and stuff. "If I close the club, I know for a fact, 100 percent, Daina is finished." EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST It comes as Bray Municipal District is inviting local sports clubs to submit an Expression of Interest to lease the premises at the former Bray Boxing Club. Bray BC has been lying empty since a 2018 shooting incident at the premises which Pete Taylor, dad of 2012 Olympic gold medalist and undisputed super lightweight champion Expressions of interest will only be accepted from fully constituted, not for profit sports clubs playing sports that are recognized by the Irish Sports Council, and which are located in the Bray Municipal District area. Expressions of interest, along with further supporting documentation, must be submitted by Friday, July 11. Fine Gael Councillor Melanie Corrigan - Cathaoirleach of Wicklow County Council - confirmed to SunSport that she had "advised" Enniskerry BC to put in an EOI.
