Michael John Conlan (born 19 November 1991) is an Irish
professional boxer
Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional fights are supervised by a regulatory auth ...
from
Belfast
Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...
.
A world, European and Commonwealth champion and
Olympic bronze medallist.
Conlon turned professional in 2016 after the 2016 Olympic Games after controversy over his loss. He was RTÉ Sports Person of the Year in 2015.
Early life
Conlan was born in
Belfast
Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...
, Northern Ireland. His father and coach, John, hails from Drimnagh,
Dublin
Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...
. His elder brother, Jamie, was also a professional boxer.
Amateur career
Domestic
Conlan won his first Ulster novice title at the age of 11, and is a three-time Irish national
flyweight
Flyweight is a weight class in combat sports.
Boxing
Flyweight is a class in boxing which includes fighters weighing up to and including 51 kg (112 lb) for a title fight.
Professional boxing
The flyweight division was the last of boxin ...
champion.
International competition
In his debut match at the 2012 Olympics, he defeated Ghanaian boxer Duke Micah, having received a bye in the first round. In the quarter final, he defeated French boxer
Nordine Oubaali
Nordine Oubaali (Arabic: نوردين أوبالي) (born 4 August 1986) is a Moroccan-French former professional boxer who competed from 2014 to 2021. He held the WBC bantamweight title from 2019 to 2021. As an amateur he won a bronze medal in ...
by 22–18, guaranteeing himself a bronze medal. Conlan lost his semi-final bout against Cuba's eventual gold medallist Robeisy Ramírez.
Conlan won a silver medal at the 2013 European Championships in
Minsk
Minsk (, ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach (Berezina), Svislach and the now subterranean Nyamiha, Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the administra ...
bantamweight
Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports and weightlifting. For boxing, the range is above and up to . In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between . In mixed martial arts, MMA, bantamweight is .
The name for the class ...
and on 2 August 2014 won the gold medal at the
2014 Commonwealth Games
The 2014 Commonwealth Games (), officially known as the XX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Glasgow 2014 (; ), were an international multi-sport event celebrated in the tradition of the Commonwealth Games as governed by the Commonwea ...
in
Glasgow
Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
, beating England's Qais Ashfaq. Conlan won despite only returning to training two weeks prior following an injury.
2015 started off with Conlan competing in the World Series of Boxing for Italia Thunder. Conlan and his teammate, fellow Irish boxer Paddy Barnes, would compete in seven fights over 14 weeks in an effort to try and secure qualification for the
2016 Olympics
The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...
in
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...
. Conlan racked up five wins out of seven, which was just enough for him to finish second in the individual ranking and secure an Olympic berth in Rio.
In August 2015 Conlan won the
European Championships
A European Championship is the top level international sports competition between European athletes or sports teams representing their respective countries or professional sports clubs.
In the plural, the European Championships also refers t ...
at bantamweight and scooped Boxer of the Tournament. He competed in four fights beating; French, Danish, Italian and Great Britain representatives. He only lost 3 rounds out of a possible 36 on individual judges' scorecards. His final was a repeat of the 2014 Commonwealth Games final against Great Britain's Qais Ashfaq. Conlan took the first in what was a very technical encounter, the Belfast man took the second on a split, by the third round the No.1 seed (Conlan) was in cruise control which saw him take the round and the fight unanimously to retain Ireland's hold on the European bantamweight title and the best boxer award (both of which John Joe Nevin won in 2013).
World champion
In October 2015, Conlan won the gold medal in the bantamweight division at the 2015 World Championships. It was Ireland's first ever male World Championship gold medal.
In December 2015, Conlan was named as the RTÉ Sports Person of the Year for 2015.
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...
, Conlon endured "daylight robbery" by losing his quarter-final on a "truly awful verdict to a blood-spattered Russian" Vladimir Nikitin. Conlon protested in the ring and said that he had been "robbed" of his Olympic dream.
The Russian subsequently withdrew from his semi-final due to the seriousness of injuries inflicted by Conlon.
2012 Summer Olympics
Won bronze in the
2012 Summer Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
at flyweight. Results were:
* Duke Micah: Won (19:8)
*
Nordine Oubaali
Nordine Oubaali (Arabic: نوردين أوبالي) (born 4 August 1986) is a Moroccan-French former professional boxer who competed from 2014 to 2021. He held the WBC bantamweight title from 2019 to 2021. As an amateur he won a bronze medal in ...
Won silver in the 2013 European Championships at flyweight. Results were:
* Narek Abgaryan: Won (3:0)
* Siarhej Loban: Won (TKO 2)
* Ovik Oganisyan: Won (2:1)
* Andrew Selby: Lost (1:2)
2014 Commonwealth Games
Conlan won Gold in the
Commonwealth Games
The Commonwealth Games is a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations, which consists mostly, but not exclusively, of territories of the former British Empire. The event was first held in 1930 ...
at bantamweight. Results were:
* Matthew Martin: Won (3:0)
*
Shiva Thapa
Shiva Thapa (born 8 December 1993) is an Indian boxer. Thapa participated in the 2012 London Olympics,Sean McGoldrick: Won (3:0)
* Qais Ashfaq: Won (3:0)
2015 European Championships
Conlan won Gold in the
European Championships
A European Championship is the top level international sports competition between European athletes or sports teams representing their respective countries or professional sports clubs.
In the plural, the European Championships also refers t ...
at bantamweight. Results were:
* Anthony Bret: Won (3:0)
* Frederik Lundgaard Jensen: Won (3:0)
* Francesco Maietta: Won (3:0)
* Qais Ashfaq: Won (3:0)
2015 World Championships
Conlan won Gold in the
World Championships
A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...
at bantamweight. Results were:
* Robenílson Vieira: Won (2:1)
* Tayfur Aliyev: Won (3:0)
* Dzmitry Asanau: Won (3:0)
* Murodjon Akhmadaliev: Won (3:0)
2016 Summer Olympics
Conlan lost at the quarter-finals stage in the
2016 Summer Olympics
The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...
Following the 2016 Olympics and his disillusionment with amateur boxing, Conlan reaffirmed his intentions of turning professional. Despite interest from several big promotions and rumours of a deal being struck with
Mayweather Promotions
Mayweather Promotions, LLC is a boxing promotional firm founded in 2007 by Floyd Mayweather Jr., after exercising a provision in his contract with Bob Arum and Top Rank that allowed him to become a free agent for the price of $750,000. Al Haymon ha ...
, it was Top Rank who secured Conlan's signature. On 23 September,
Bob Arum
Robert Arum (born December 8, 1931) is an American lawyer and boxing promoter. He is the founder and CEO of Top Rank, a professional boxing promotion company based in Las Vegas. Prior to becoming a boxing promoter, Arum was employed as an attorn ...
confirmed that Conlan would be making his professional debut at
The Theater at Madison Square Garden
The Theater at Madison Square Garden is a theater located in New York City's Madison Square Garden (MSG). It seats between 2,000 and 5,600 people and is used for concerts, shows, sports, meetings, and other events. It is situated beneath the main ...
, on
St. Patrick's Day
Saint Patrick's Day, or the Feast of Saint Patrick (), is a religious and cultural holiday held on 17 March, the traditional death date of Saint Patrick (), the foremost patron saint of Ireland.
Saint Patrick's Day was made an official Chri ...
.
On 17 March 2017, Conlan won his first fight as a professional boxer, beating Tim Ibarra by a third round
technical knockout
A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking, a ...
(TKO) at the theatre at
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as the Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh and Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eig ...
.
On 3 August 2019, he fought Diego Alberto Ruiz. In front of a packed crowd in his hometown Belfast, Conlan continued his unbeaten streak in the pros and stopped his opponent in nine rounds.
On 14 December, Conlan faced Vladimir Nikitin. It was a much anticipated bout, since Nikitin beat Conlan twice in the amateurs, including once at the Rio Olympics in 2016. Conlan won comfortably on all three scorecards, 100–90, 99-91 and 98–92.
In his next fight, Conlan squared off against Sofiane Takoucht. Conlan started the fight fast, and was dominant throughout most of the fight, assaulting Takoucht with numerous body shots. Some of Conlan's body shots were landing below the belt, for which he was deducted a point on two occasions. In the tenth round, Conlan was just too much for the Frenchman, and the referee stopped the fight, awarding Conlan the tenth-round TKO win.
Conlan won his first bout at the super-bantam weight level on 30 April 2021, beating Ionut Baluta by a majority decision.
Conlan returned to featherweight in his next bout, as he faced T. J. Doheny for the vacant WBA interim featherweight title on 6 August 2021. Conlan won the fight by unanimous decision, with two judges scoring the fight 116–111 in his favor, while the third judge scored it 119–108 for him. He scored the sole knockdown of the bout in the fifth round, dropping Doheny with a strike to the body.
Conlan remained in the featherweight level for his fight against Leigh Wood, the current WBA (Regular) featherweight title holder, on 12 March 2022. He started the fight brightly, scoring a knockdown on Wood in the first round and he continued to dominate until the later rounds when Wood came back into the contest more. Conlan went down in the 11th round, it was scored as a knockdown despite protests from Conlan's corner. In the 12th, with Conlan just being ahead on all the scorecards, Wood improved again and 1:25 into the round he knocked out Conlan, with Conlan falling through the ropes and reportedly being rendered unconscious for "a minute or two". He was quickly taken to hospital, Conlan since has said he is "all good" and his scans were "clear".
On August 6, 2022, Conlan made his ring return at SSE Arena Belfast in Belfast, Northern Ireland. He faced three-time world title challenger Miguel Marriaga of Colombia. He won the fight by unanimous decision, scoring three knockdowns in Round 7, 8 and 9.
Controversy
2016 Summer Olympics boxing
In the men's bantamweight quarterfinal stage of the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Conlan was eliminated by a controversial call, in which Russia's Vladimir Nikitin was awarded the victory. Conlan reacted by raising his middle finger at the judges and delivering a strongly-worded live television interview to
RTÉ
(; ; RTÉThe É in RTÉ is pronounced as an English E () and not an Irish É ()) is an Irish public service broadcaster. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on television, radio and online. The radio service began on 1 January 1926, ...
, accusing officials in amateur boxing of corruption. That decision was one of a number that had fellow international boxers and commentators questioning the integrity of Olympic boxing and the scoring system used.
Conlan was found placing bets on boxing events at the 2016 Summer Olympics, violating the
IOC
The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based in L ...
rules. Accordingly, he was sanctioned with a severe reprimand by the Disciplinary Commission of the IOC.
Pro Irish Republican 'ring walk'
In his eleventh professional bout, Conlan arrived in Madison Square Garden with
The Wolfe Tones
The Wolfe Tones are an Irish rebel music band that incorporate Irish traditional music in their songs. Formed in 1963, they take their name from Theobald Wolfe Tone, one of the leaders of the Irish Rebellion of 1798, with the double meaning ...
' song '' Celtic Symphony'' playing and some of the crowd chanting ''"Ooh ahh, up the 'Ra"''. Some, including Northern Irish former world champion
Dave McAuley
David Anthony McAuley, MBE (born 15 June 1961, Larne) is a former professional boxer from Northern Ireland who competed from 1983 to 1992. He held the IBF flyweight title from 1989 to 1992 and challenged twice for the WBA flyweight title, i ...
, called for action from boxing regulatory bodies. The niece of an IRA bombing victim suggested that Conlan had "glorified terrorism" and criticised the boxer by suggesting he was the antithesis of other boxers like
Barry McGuigan
Finbar Patrick "Barry" McGuigan MBE (born 28 February 1961) is an Irish boxing promoter and former professional boxer. Born in Clones, County Monaghan, McGuigan was nicknamed ''The Clones Cyclone'' and held the WBA and lineal featherweight ...
and Carl Frampton who had always strived to keep a cross-community spirit in boxing. Promoter Barney Eastwood echoed McAuley's sentiment, saying it "should never have been allowed to come about". Politicians and boxing coach John Breen also suggested that Conlan will have lost support because of it. Conlan subsequently apologised for his "misjudgement" in using Celtic Symphony as his ring-walk music.
TV3 Channel 3 or TV 3 may refer to:
Television
*Canal 3 (Burkina Faso), a commercial television channel in Burkina Faso
* Canal 3 Niger, a commercial television channel in Niger
* Canal 3 (Guatemala), a commercial television channel in Guatemala
* Can ...
.
In 2016, Conlan appeared in Road To Rio on
RTÉ2
RTÉ2 (formerly branded as RTÉ 2 from 1978–88, Network 2 from 1988–97, N2 from 1997–2004 and RTÉ Two from 2004–14) is an Irish free-to-air television channel operated by public service broadcaster RTÉ. It was launched on 2 Novemb ...
RTÉ Sport
RTÉ Sport is a department of Irish public broadcaster RTÉ. The department provides sporting coverage through a number of platforms including RTÉ Radio, RTÉ Television, RTÉ.ie, RTÉ Player, RTÉ Player Sport and RTÉ.ie, RTÉ Mobile. RTÉ h ...