The third stage of the Boxing Road to Tokyo series, the European qualifying event, is about to kick off in London, Great Britain, from 14 to 24 March. The competition will be held at the Copper Box Arena, a legacy venue from the Olympic Games London 2012 that will be used again for this awaited competition.
A total of 318 boxers (219 men and 99 women) from 43 nations have registered to compete in the event which has 77 Olympic quota places at stake.
Yesterday has been a great opportunity for the national media (among them also BBC and Sky Sport) to meet the 13 members of the GB Boxing Team (10 from England and 3 from Wales) that arrived this morning at the Arena and has been available for interviews and photos. Present this morning and ready to grab their ticket to Tokyo:
MEN
WOMEN
The men are a young group in which seven out of eight have won at least one medal at a Major (European or World) Championship.
The 28 years-old and 2018 Commonwealth Games gold medallist, Frazer Clarke, said: “It’s a dream of mine to go to the Olympics and I wasn’t just going to give up. I watch motivational videos about never giving up. I’ve put so much into this – 17 years of work. I have a partner and daughter I want to make proud. I am doing this not just for my future but our future.”
He also added: “The other two times I felt like I could have gone to the Games and got the experience. This time I feel like I am a serious competitor. I want to go as a serious competitor, lead the team into Tokyo, act as the elder, set an example and get a gold medal.”
The five women squad includes the recent Middleweight’s World Champion, Lauren Price, joined by the Featherweight World Championship medallist, Karriss Artingstall and 2019 European Championship bronze medallist, class 1996, Rosie Eccles in the Welterweight category.
The 19 years-old, Caroline Dubois, has never compete as a senior yet but has reached outstanding results as a youth: she won the gold medal at the Girls’ lightweight competition at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympic Games. Also, she was named from the BBC, Young Sport Personality of the Year in 2019.
“Being 19 at the Olympics, God willing win the gold, that is not something many have done and is what I want to do. I want people to remember me as a great boxer. Not as one of the best female boxers but one of the best boxers, period. I want people to recognise that I am good and be inspired by me.” Dubois explains.
Tickets now available
Tickets for the Boxing Road to Tokyo in London are on sale online here (click to open link). Prices starts at GBP 5 (adults) and GBP 2.50 (concessions) for weekday sessions.
Follow the action live
Fans can watch the action live on the Olympic Channel, with all the women’s and men’s bouts across all weight categories available with commentary in English and Russian. Coverage will be available in all territories worldwide for free at olympicchannel.com and on its apps for mobile and connected TV devices.
News, photos and results will be posted online on the dedicated London qualifier page of the Athlete365 Boxing Corner platform. We encourage fans to join the conversation online using the hashtag #Boxing.
