Today is European Coaches Day, and Boxing Ireland honours the thousands of coaches who give of their time, relentlessly, to support boxers in every club in the federation.
They’re there before the first boxer arrives for training, and long after the last boxer goes home. They’re there when hands are raised, and when they aren’t.
They’re there when hands need to be wrapped, when words of encouragement are needed to lift a boxer’s spirits, and when harder lessons need to be learned.
They instill values like discipline, respect, resilience and confidence, a sense of community, values that boxers carry with them throughout their lives.
Boxing Ireland is proudly home to over 2,500 coaches in over 360 clubs, who deliver thousands of hours of training every year, creating champions – in the ring, and outside of it.