Eadaoin strikes triple gold in Mayo
AFTER a successful trip to Hungary in May local kickboxer Eadaoin McCrave continued her hot streak in Mayo last weekend with a treble of gold medals in the West of Irelands White Tiger Challenge.
Eadaoin’s tally of medals started on Sunday morning when she was asked step up an age group to join forces with Derry Kickboxer Eamon Lynn and Offaly’s Luke Menton in an older junior team event.
En-route to the final the combination team had overcome Bushido Martial Arts Clondakin in the quarter final and hosts hite Tiger in the semi final to set up a final showdown against Eadaoin’s own club Tallaght Martial Arts in the decider.
After three rounds, extra time and sudden death the combination team held out to win by one point.
Next up for Eadaoin was her preferred division of older cadet which she will be competing in the upcoming World Championships in August.
With a relatively convincing run to the final it was no surprise that Eadaoin met fellow Tallaght Martial Arts club mate and best friend Jodie Browne in the final.
Jodie, who is the Current National champion and was a one-point winner over Eadaoin in one of her finals in the Hungarian Cup in May was always going to be a tough competitor and the clash didn’t disappoint the spectators as Eadaoin turned the tables to secure a close one-point victory.
Last up for Eadaoin on the day was the Older Cadet Grand Champion, a combination of all weights coming together to fight it out for the overall Grand Champion Trophy.
After a convincing quarter final win over Mayo fighter Sinead Nolan and a close run semi-final against UK Fighter Kerala Richards from Watford, once again it was no surprise that Eadaoin would take on Jodie Browne once more.
And yet again after two rounds, extra time and sidden death coming into play, a mere one point separated the girls again with Eadaoin completing a magnificent treble of golds for the day.
Afterwards Eadaoin thanked her coaches Dave Heffernan and Marin Bannon from Tallaght Martial Arts and all her club mates who push each other so hard at training every night,
She also paid tribute to her family and friends for all their support over the last number of years.
Travelling to Dublin three or four times a week is tough on Eadaoin but it’s reaping rewards with excellent coaching and preparation being put together for the world championships.
With ten weeks to go Eadaoin’s preparation continues with a weekend camp in Birmingham next week, national training camps in Dublin and Sligo plus three more competitions to keep her focused on the main event.