Ward fights european semifinal tonight

Moate boxer Joe Ward fights for at least a European silver medal tonight (Friday) at the European Elite Championships in Bulgaria.

Ward is due to meet Croatian fighter Hrvoje Sep in the 81kg (light heavyweight) semi-final at approximately 7.30pm.

Sep, the 29-year-old Croatian top seed, is an experienced and tough campaigner, who picked up a bronze at the 2011 European Championships, in which Ward won gold as a 17-year-old.

The fight will be broadcast live on RTE 2 tv, with coverage of the evening session starting at 6pm.

Ward secured a medal on Wednesday when he overcame Belarussian Mikhail Dauhaliavets, 30-27, 29-28, 29-28 having beaten Georgia’s Nikoloz Selchniashvili in the last 16 in an unanimous decision on Tuesday night.

By reaching the semi finals, Ward, who did not contest the 2013 European finals, has secured a place in October's AIBA World Men’s Elite Championships

Ward would need to reach the final at the World Men’s Elite Championships, in Qatar, to seal automatic qualification to the Olympics.

If Ward fails to achieve Olympic qualification through this route, it will not be the end of his Olympic dream - as there are a couple of other Olympic qualification tournaments to take place next year.