Strabane boxing referee reflects on Olympic Games experience

THE Olympic Games in Paris were great for the Irish cohort of competitors, both North and South, with a plethora of medals to show for it.

But, unbeknownst to a lot of people in the City of Lights, Strabane had its own representative in the form of boxing referee Ben McGarrigle.

A veteran official of the pugilistic arts, Ben said he was ‘honoured’ to be a part of his first Games.

He said, “I had a wonderful time; the whole experience was truly fantastic.

“I first took an interesting in boxing way back when I was seven years old and never did I think that, 53 years later, I would be adjudicating at the Olympic Games. It’s been a dream come true.”

So, how did a Strabane man end up at the Olympics? As Ben explains, “The process has been going on since March of last year when boxing referees were invited to express an interest in going to the Games. In order to qualify, you need to be assessed through five continental qualifying tournaments and two world qualifying tournaments, taking me to the likes of Asia, Papua New Guinea and Santiago in Chile.

“Each referee is scrutinised on their judging and refereeing skills to decide if they make the cut.

“I found out just weeks before the start of the Games that I had succeeded on, of all days, my birthday… It was quite the birthday present I can tell you!”

Ben spent a few days in Paris even before the Games began but, admits he didn’t really get to see much of the sights of the capital in that time. He did get to see the elaborate opening ceremony but, after that, it was all business.

‘Electric atmosphere’

He said, “When the boxing sessions began, it was a full day. We were shipped from our hotel in the morning around half nine, with the first session beginning at eleven with three sessions in total which may drag on till eleven that night.

“Every referee is sequestered away in a room where we can watch the bouts on a big screen and only find out if we are adjudicating or refereeing a bout around five minutes before hand, decided by a computer system. All-in-all, I saw every single bout, whether in person or on television.

“I can honestly say that, I have never experienced an atmosphere like it in my life, absolutely electric. When you’re concentrating on the bout, there’s no time to look up, but the air was thick with a nervous excitement.”

Ben made it through to the end of the tournament, staged at the world famous Roland Garros stadium, usually known for the French Open, meaning that his performance wasn’t sullied by warnings or sanctions, something about which he is ‘immensely proud’.

He added, “We were treated wonderfully but everyone involved with the boxing and the Games in general, I can’t fault it. I know that I wouldn’t have been there if it hadn’t been for the support I have had throughout my career; my family and parents who encouraged me from the age of seven, the boxing club in Strabane and the Northern Ireland Fire Service for letting me continue refereeing all over the world while also working.

“Do I have my eyes on LA in 2028? Absolutely.

“Boxing needs to be in the Olympics and I intend to be there along with it!”