IABA

About Us

Established in 1911, The Irish Amateur Boxing Association’s (IABA) main role is to develop, foster and control amateur boxing in the 32 counties of Ireland. The IABA is committed to provide the Environment, in which support and opportunities given to our athletes, coaches and clubs excel, and in doing so to increase participation and improve performance in Irish Boxing. The IABA operates from the National Stadium in Dublin, the only purpose built amateur boxing stadium in the world and there are currently over 330 clubs affiliated to the association across the Island of Ireland. It is a volunteer led organisation where the hard work, dedication and significant time afforded by each member has contributed to the growing success of the sport in Ireland. The sport of boxing flourished in the 1920’s as the newly formed Government viewed Boxing as an ideal way to promote the fledging Country and gain International recognition.

Womens Boxing

Katie Taylor – 2012 OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALLIST / 4 TIME WORLD CHAMPION  / 6 TIME EUROPEAN CHAMPION/ 5 TIME EUROPEAN UNION CHAMPION

There has been a renewed interest in boxing in Ireland amongst women over the last few years. One of the main reasons for this has been the success of Bray Boxing Club’s very own Katie Taylor.

In October 2001, a 15-year-year-old Taylor beat Belfast’s Alanna Audley- Murphy in the first-ever sanctioned female boxing match at the National Stadium in Dublin.

Katie Taylor is without doubt the greatest female amateur boxer in the world today. She is a 6 time European champion, 4 Time World champion and 5 time European Union champion. The Bray woman has also scooped the AIBA World Elite Female Boxer of the Year Award on three occasions. All her wins have been in the lightweight class.

In 2009, Women’s Boxing was first designated as an Olympic Sport and took place at The London 2012 Olympics where Katie Taylor made history by becoming the first Irish Female boxer to qualify for the Olympics and the first ever Irish female boxer to win an Olympic Gold Medal.

High Performance

The IABA is a volunteer lead organisation where each club member’s tireless work and contribution to the sport on a local level has contributed significantly to the great success that our boxers have had at International competition.  The fundamentals of boxing which are being taught throughout the clubs of Ireland continue to provide the rich boxing talent required to succeed at the highest level. This talent is being further nurtured and coached by a dedicated High Performance Coaching team and Support Staff which allow the competitors to be in the best possible condition ahead of International Competition.

The High Performance Unit was founded in 2003 by the Irish Sports Council and IABA. The Programme is unique in the sense that it set out forward thinking from the outset by including three levels of international categories on the HP Programme, Youth, Junior and Senior. The High Performance Unit is dedicated to developing and nurturing talent from boxing clubs all over Ireland from  14-15  years (Junior) to 17-18 years (Youths ) and seniors over the age of 19 years.  The primary aim of the unit is to best prepare the athletes for qualification for the Olympic Games.