Bainbridge boxes clever to win silver at her first Junior Euros
MEGAN Bainbridge packed a real punch at her first Junior European Championships, writes TONY HODGSON.
The 15-year-old from Chester-le-Street boxed clever to claim an impressive silver medal in the 48kgs category at the event, staged at Anapa in Russia.
The Brandon Boxing Club fighter stopped her Moldovan opponent in the quarter-finals before losing to a more experienced Russian rival in the gold-medal decider.
It was a first Euro call-up for the North Durham Academy student, although she has represented Great Britain before in a tri-nations competition.
Bainbridge had been tipped for glory before the championship by Brandon ABC head coach Alex Oliver - and he was delighted to be proved right.
He said: “Megan was the youngest competitor at the championships so her success there augurs very well for the future.
“She knocked her opponent down in the quarter-final and then gave a fantastic account of herself in the final against a fighter who was more than a year older than her.
“There was very little in it - the Russian girl probably just about deserved the win - and Megan did so well in what was her first major international event.
“To win a silver medal in this sort of company is fantastic and we hope Megan will go back to the Euros next year and go one better.”
The youngster, who took up boxing aged nine, attended an England camp in Italy before heading out to Russia.
Her call-up followed her striking gold - for a third year in succession at the Monkstown Box Cup in Ireland.