O’REILLY’S GLIMMER OF HOPE

MICHAEL O’REILLY could face a six-week wait on his Olympic fate, although his chances of booking a ticket to Rio remain shrouded in uncertainty. Portlaoise middleweight O’Reilly lost out in controversial fashion to Egypt’s Hosam Abdin on Wednesday night in a third-place Olympic box-off. Boxing’s world governing body AIBA last night insisted that National Olympic Committees (NOCs) have until December 4 to confirm their use of Olympic quota places, meaning some confusion remains surrounding the status of world champion Arlen Lopez. Cuban Lopez is now qualified for Rio through both the World Championships and the World Series of Boxing (WSB) competition, meaning an Olympic slot may open up for O’Reilly thanks to his medal picked up here in Doha should Cuba choose to send Lopez to Rio on the back of his WSB success.