Ten-years-old Alex Fitzpatrick from Tuam and experienced campaigner Gary Manogue from Castlepark were winners at an international kickboxing tournament in Ramelton, Donegal, on Saturday.
Fitpatrick was the first of the Galway Black Dragon Kickboxing Club’s fighters in the ring, taking on the home team’s Patrick Mc Fadden in a rematch.On the last occasion the fight went McFadden’s way, but this time the determined young warrior from Tuam turned it around and earned a well-deserved points victory from all three ringside judges.
Gary Manogue, the current IKF 5 Nations superwelterweight champion, took on one of France’s finest, Mouim Issilahy, a Muay Thai specialist, in what proved one of Manogue’s hardest fights to date. It took Manogue a round or two to figure out the tough Frenchman before catching him with a crisp body hook which slowed him down and the referee gave him an eight count. And halfway through the fourth round the Galwayman caught Issilahy with a straight left punch followed by a right hook to the temple and the brave Frenchman was out on his feet with Manogue taking victory by TKO and increasing his fight record to a perfect 16 and 0.
