EIGHT Commonwealth Games winning medallists are amongst the 12 boxers that have been selected to compete for Team GB in the boxing tournament at the forthcoming European Games in Minsk (21 – 30 June 2019).
They are part of a 12-strong boxing team that will compete alongside 101 British athletes from 11 sports for Team GB at the second European Games.
The boxers are from England, Scotland and Wales and include 10 men and two women, Lauren Price and Rosie Eccles, who qualified for the event via their performances at the 2018 European Championships in Bulgaria.
Price, 24, is looking to build on a superb year in 2018 which saw her rise to number three in the world at middleweight after she followed-up the gold she won for Wales at the 2018 Commonwealth Games with bronze medals at the World and European Championships.
Her compatriot Eccles is looking to consolidate on the progress she made in 2018, which saw her take welterweight silver at the Commonwealth Games and reach the quarter-finals of the European Championships in Sofia.
The welsh duo are joined by 10 male selections which includes a number of multiple medal winners and two boxers that competed for Team GB at the 2016 Olympic Games, Galal Yafai and Pat McCormack.
They are joined by the reigning European and Commonwealth champion, Peter McGrail and super-heavyweight, Frazer Clarke, who also took gold at the Gold Coast event in 2018.
European silver medallists and Commonwealth bronze medallists, Luke McCormack and Cheavon Clarke are also in the line-up, along with 2017 European bronze medallist, Calum French.
Ben Whittaker, Mark Dickinson and Aqeel Ahmed make-up the remainder of the boxing team. Ahmed is the sole Scottish representative in the team and competed for his country at the 2014 and 2018 Commonwealth Games. He was the 2017 National champion and is a two-time GB Boxing Champion.
Dickinson is the reigning England Boxing national champion and one of four boxers from Birtley ABC in the team. Whittaker is a two-time National Champion and in his most recent competition for GB Boxing won a gold medal at the Gee Bee Tournament in Helsinki.
The full line-up of boxers is:
Boxer | Weight Class | Country | Club |
MEN | |||
Aqeel Ahmed | 49kg | Scotland | Kier Hardie ABC |
Galal Yafai | 52kg | England | Birmingham City |
Peter McGrail | 56kg | England | Everton Red Triangle |
Calum French | 60kg | England | Birtley ABC |
Luke McCormack | 64kg | England | Birtley ABC |
Pat McCormack | 69kg | England | Birtley ABC |
Mark Dickinson | 75kg | England | Birtley ABC |
Benjamin Whittaker | 81kg | England | Firewalker ABC |
Cheavon Clarke | 91kg | England | Gravesham ABC |
Frazer Clarke | 91kg+ | England | Burton ABC |
WOMEN | |||
Rosie Eccles | 69kg | Wales | Pontypool Boxing Club, Pontypool |
Lauren Price | 75kg | Wales | Pontypool Boxing Club, Pontypool |
Individual profiles of the boxers are available at http://www.gbboxing.org.uk/gb-boxing-squad/podium-squad/.
Results and updates on the progress of the team at the European Games will be posted at www.gbboxing.org.uk and on the GB Boxing twitter feed @gbboxing once the tournament begins.