IRELAND secured its fourth medal at Tokyo 2020 last night after boxer Katie Harrington qualified for the semi-final of the women's lightweight competition.
The Dubliner is guaranteed at least a Bronze medal after her victory against Algeria's Imane Khelif by unanimous decision.
In the end, Harrington made it look rather easy. Four of the five judges gave her the first round, and she was awarded the second and third rounds by all five judges.
"You know, I’m overwhelmed with emotions at the moment," the 31-year-old told RTÉ Sport after the bout.
"Sometimes you think of getting here, and never think of getting medals or anything. Sometimes I think I’m lucky
"Everything I’ve achieved, I owe it to Noel Burke, my club coach at home and I owe it to these men (coaches in Tokyo) and the rest of the Irish high performance team.
'I'm overwhelmed with emotion... You think of getting here but you never think of getting medals'@Kelly64kg pays tribute to coaches, team-mates and community#tokyo2020 #RTESport #boxing #olympics
📺 Watch – https://t.co/hHD01dUcII
📱 Updates - https://t.co/WA9s2jBflo pic.twitter.com/EhSY6oqYrL— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) August 3, 2021
"My teammates as well for all the sparring and the preparation, all the support we give each other.
"And the support that I’m getting from the community back home. I’ve heard that it’s lit back home and I’m just so happy and my emotions really come when it comes to this, because to be able to give them something to be happy about and to sing and dance for… I’m just one person lifting a little bit of a nation.
"Hakuna matata," Harrington added. "It means no worries for the rest of your days, that’s what I say.
"It wasn’t an amazing fight, but it was a fight that I won."
Her next opponent - Thailand's Sudaporn Seesondee - looked very impressive however as she overcame Britain's Caroline Dubois. The two will face eachother on Thursday for a place in the final.
Harrington could follow in the footsteps of Katie Taylor, who won Gold for Ireland back in 2012.
