The Boxing Joyces - Mullingar Boxing Champions, Ireland 2006

A Mullingar family are known locally as the ‘Boxing Joyces’.

Ranging in age from five to twenty-four years, brothers and cousins Christy, Hugh, Christy, John Joe, David Joe, David Joe, John Joe, David Oliver, David, Davy, Hugh and John Joe Joyce have won forty-four All-Ireland titles between them in just eight years.

These twelve dedicated amateur boxers are the sons of two brothers and one of their young uncles. They can all be found training in the back yard of Christy Joyce’s house every day of the week.

John Joe Joyce who is father and coach to Davy Oliver, John Joe Jr and Christy, takes pride in the commitment of his sons’to the sport,

You have to be proud of young lads like that. They’re putting the time into it and getting somewhere out of it.

Four of the Joyces are now training full time as amateur boxers. The younger boys in particular look up to the older Davy Oliver who has eleven All-Ireland titles under his belt. John Joe who only has one less title acknowledges that training can be a challenge but.

When you’re coming up to a championship it helps you a lot.

The benefits of the boxing training do not just encompass physical fitness, says coach and dad Christy Joyce,

With the boxing I know where they are, they’re not roaming around the streets.

Meal times in Christy’s home are especially important and are his wife Bridgie’s domain. Weight watching is crucial in boxing, and has to be combined with the right nutrition. A dietary regime begins five weeks prior to each championship,

Coming up to the last week or you have to get the weight right.

Christy Joyce and his brother are All-Ireland Handball champions, and only became involved in boxing nine years ago when their sons showed an interest in it.

Both men attribute the success of the Joyces to one man, Dominic O’Rourke from Saint Michael’s Boxing Club in Athy, where their sons train five nights a week. Dominic O’Rourke who is also President of the Irish Amateur Boxing Association says this is a sport that welcomes Travellers with open arms,

It’s great for the Association...to have the Travelling Community involved.

Traveller Francis Barrett who carried the Tricolour for the Irish Olympic team at the 1992 Atlanta Olympics is held responsible for the current trend in Irish boxing. He is someone to look up to, says Davy Oliver,

He showed everyone that Travellers can get to the Olympics as good as anyone else.

The Joyces are also aiming high, and with Saint Michael’s winning best club in the country for four of the past five years, they are in the right place at the right time. All are potential Olympians maintains Domnic O’Rourke,

We’ll help them fulfil their dreams.

This report for Nationwide was broadcast on 26 April 2006. The reporter is Róisín Ní Eadhra.