Leah Gallen is off to Russia today – and says appearing in the European Junior Championships will be a dream come true.
Gallen has won three Irish titles so far in her young career – two of them, the Irish Girl 5 and Senior Cadet, this year.
Now, the Raphoe ABC welterweight is off to Anapa and she’ll make her Irish debut by the Black Sea.
“I’m so excited,” said Gallen, who turns 16 today.
“Words can’t describe it. I was training flat out and been trying to keep the head in it.
“This has always been the dream and I’ve finally got here. It’s happened now. It gave me such a boost. I just want to train harder and work harder.”
Gallen stopped Sophia Hopkova in the Cadet final, a win that effectively confirmed her passage to Russia. Earlier in the year, Gallen overcame Keisha Attwell in the Girl 5 decider.
Now, she gets set to take on the cream of the continent,
She said: “It’s just a completely different experience to anything before. I’m nervous for it, but more so excited. So many people are coming wishing me luck and it means a lot that everyone is behind me.”
Listen to the full interview below …