Westmeath men impress in London Olympics

Ballymore man Joseph Murphy had an Olympics to remember as he qualified for the individual final in the gruelling 3-Day Eventing competition. Murphy had competed in the dressage on Sunday, logging up 55.6 penalties, and lying well down the field. However, he impressed on the cross country course, adding only another 4.2 penalties on Monday. Yesterday (Tuesday) morning, he then produced a stunning clear round in the showjumping arena Along with a clear round from colleague Aoife Clark, it was enough to propel Ireland from eighth overnight to an impressive fifth place finish. The top 25 riders also qualified for the individual event final, with Murphy finishing 24th in the individual standings. At the time of going to press, he had just completed a clear round in the final, catapulting him further up the rankings, but outside the medals places. Meanwhile, Mullingar bantamweight boxer, John Joe Nevin advanced with ease to the last 16 following a comprehensive victory on Saturday. John Joe, competing in his second successive Olympics, is a focused young man and he set about his work in a professional manner, overcoming the challenge of Denmark's Dennis Ceylan on 21-6. As he reflected on his performance afterwards, one could hear a pin drop. Looking relaxed and composed, John Joe was clearly delighted with his win and was contemplating his next fight today (Wednesday) afternoon. In the opposite corner will be Kazakhstan's Kanat Abutalipov, who John Joe has met and defeated in the past. "I fought him two years ago," he recalled in press interviews, "and beat him 15-2. He's been on the WSB (the World Series of Boxing) and he is really tough.