Manchester-born and bred boxer Patrick Brown has officially qualified for the 2024 Olympics after an impressive display in the final bouts of the Road to Paris event in Italy earlier this week.
The local fighter based out of the Moss Side Fire Station Boxing Club and Sale West ABC sealed his place as part of the Team GB Boxing squad travelling to the French capital this summer following his unanimous win over Poland’s Mateusz Bereznicki.
Pat emerged victorious in the impressive heavyweight matchup and it’s safe to say there’s plenty to be excited about with one of our own heading to the Olympic Games in July.
Having only been with GB Boxing for just a couple of years and fought 21 amateur fights, it was a great achievement for the native talent to be the first to qualify for the big stage in just a few months’ time.
📰 | NEWS: Conclusion of Boxing Road to Paris event in Italy sees Patrick Brown and Chantelle Reid earn qualification for Paris 2024 Olympic Games
Speaking on the clubs so close to his heart, Brown said: “Words can’t describe how I feel. I could cry my eyes out! I’m just showing to my amateur club at Moss Side Fire Station and Sale ABC, and the kids there, that if they keep going and work hard, anything is possible.”
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As for the club itself, they shared images of numerous aspiring athletes training hard taking a well-earned break to cheer on Pat and witness him get past his opponent in fine fashion, scoring 30-27 across the board.
Celebrating the result from an alumnus of the disused fire station, Greater Manchester Fire Rescue Service’s (GMFRS) Chief Fire Officer, Dave Russel said: “I’m incredibly proud of Pat, all the trainers and coaching staff at Moss Side Fire Station Boxing Club.
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“To qualify for the Olympics 2024 is a phenomenal achievement and I wish Pat the very best of luck in Paris.” You could tell how much it meant to the 24-year-old too — as well as his dad, who dedicated the landmark moment to.
🗣 “Words can’t describe how I’m feeling…I could cry!
“I can’t wait to show my dad, he’s who I’ve done this for.
“This felt out of reach a few years ago but I’ve always believed in myself.”
He went on to give special thanks to Moss Side Fire Station BC to head coach Nigel Travis, “who works tirelessly at the boxing club developing young people.”
“Raising aspirations through sport enables our service to work at the very heart of our local communities”, says Russel, adding: “I’m sure Pat’s incredible achievement will inspire other young people for many years to come.”
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Set up by Travis back in 2008 alongside three other firefighters, the Moss Side Boxing Club remains a key pillar of the wider community work done by the GMFRS’ Safer Communities and Interventions Team, working with young people across the region to build confidence, self-esteem, as well as fitness and skills through mentoring from positive role models — something well worth celebrating.
You can watch the full fight between Brown and Bereznicki down below and we wish Pat and the rest of his team all the very best at the Games later this year.
Patrick Brown from Manchester is heading to the Paris Olympics. Remember the name.
Featured Images — Supplied/GB Boxing (via Getty/Instagram)
Sport
Details released of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners while Mayor
Emily Sergeant
Details of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners during his tenure as Mayor of Greater Manchester have been released.
In case you need bringing up to speed on the situation a little first, Manchester City was found guilty back in September all of its charges related to the Premier League’s financial rules over a nine-season period, and on top of that, was also found guilty of the majority of charges in relation to its failure to co-operate with the League’s investigation.
According to the Premier League, the independent Commission found that Manchester City had arranged so-called ‘sham’ commercial deals with a number of its sponsors.
These were part of a disguised funding scheme – with those sponsors only required to pay a portion of the relevant sponsorship fees.
The remainder was then funded by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd (ADUG), which owned the club.
The Commission also concluded, as quoted by the Premier League, that the club had ‘made concerted efforts to stop and frustrate the Premier League investigation’.
Within the past week or so, it has since come to light that now-Prime Minister Andy Burnham had dealings with Manchester City during his tenure as Greater Manchester Mayor, and Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) has now issued a public statement, giving details on the matter and what these ‘dealings’ entailed.
A spokesperson for GMCA confirmed that Burnham had a ‘formal meeting’ with Man City Chairman, Khaldoon Al Mubarak, back in October 2021.
The statement reads in full: “In October 2021, Andy Burnham, in his role as Mayor of Greater Manchester, had a formal meeting with Khaldoon Al Mubarak at the UK Government’s Global Investment Summit arranged by the Department for International Trade.
“In his capacity as Mayor, he was a guest of Manchester City FC at home matches on a small number of occasions, including attending Vincent Kompany’s testimonial match in September 2019, where he met the Chairman informally in the stands. These have been declared in the usual way.
“Also during his time as Mayor, representatives of Greater Manchester sporting clubs would routinely join business delegations as part of Mayoral international visits.
“This included representatives from Manchester United travelling to Austin and Dublin, Lancashire Cricket Club joining a delegation to India, and Manchester City FC staff supporting visits to China and Japan.”
Featured Image – Lauren Hurley / Number 10 Downing Street (Press Image via Flickr)
Sport
Multiple arrests made for ‘tragedy chanting’ and police officer assault as Man City defeated Liverpool
Emily Sergeant
Multiple people were arrested over the weekend as Manchester City defeated Liverpool in a Premier League clash.
Merseyside Police have confirmed that a total of 10 people were arrested during the policing operation at Liverpool’s home ground of Anfield as they hosted Manchester City on Sunday 11 October.
One man was arrested on suspicion of assaulting a police constable, five were on suspicion of tragedy chanting, one on suspicion of being drunk and disorderly, two for affray, and one on suspicion of throwing items onto the pitch.
Police are now appealing to the public, and are particularly looking to speak to witnesses of the assault of the officer.
At around 6:35pm, as fans left the stadium, a police officer sustained a ‘serious facial injury’ during the arrest of a man on Anfield Road, and was subsequently taken to hospital for treatment but is now recovering at home.
Investigating officers are now conducting enquiries, speaking to witnesses, and analysing CCTV and camera phone footage.
Chief Inspector Leanne Hobin said it’s ‘extremely disappointing’ that an officer has sustained a serious injury while carrying out their duty.
“I hope the arrests send a clear message and act as a deterrent to others,” Chief Inspector Hobin continued. “Anyone who engages in this abhorrent behaviour risks ending up in custody and getting a criminal record.
“Despite the actions of a few, the overwhelming majority of the 60,000 fans in attendance behaved well and I want to thank them for their co-operation.”
Manchester City ended up defeated Liverpool 3-0 during the Premier League clash at Anfield.
Danny Jones -
14th March 2024 
