 Murray (r) in action for England in March 2007 |
Joe Murray has become the first British boxer to qualify for the 2008 Olympics. The 20-year-old Murray defeated Mauritius' Commonwealth Games silver medallist Bruno Julie 26-19 in Chicago.
The win ensured Murray qualified for the last eight of the World Amateur Championships and secured him a place in Great Britain's team for Beijing.
"It's a dream come true," said Murray. "I've got to give a massive thank you to my England coach Terry Edwards and my club coach Joe Gallagher."
Murray, who fights for the Moss Side amateur club and is a former room-mate of Amir Khan, added: "It's not bad going to have two Lancashire fighters reaching two Olympics in a row."
Showing impressive maturity, Murray raced into a 5-0 lead and, despite his lead being pegged back to two points at one stage, the British boxer never had to chase the fight.
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Edwards said: "Joe has got the first one on the board and it is a remarkable achievement for him really.
"It will really lift the team and now Joe can concentrate on going further in this competition."
Khan won a silver medal at the Athens Olympics in 2004 after losing 30-22 to Cuban Mario Kindelan in the lightweight final.
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