The Irish Athletic Boxing Association is deeply saddened by the passing today of Joe Hennigan.

Joe, a native of Co. Mayo, gave over 60 years of service to boxing at club, county, provincial and national level.

He was the driving force behind Ardaree Boxing Club in his native county for decades, serving there as a coach and administrator. He was also elected President of the Mayo County Board, and served for a considerable time as President of the Connacht Provincial Council. He was honoured in 2012 with IABA’s National Administrator accolade and in 2013 with the Connacht’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

Joe was also a qualified Judge and Referee, and gave thousands of hours of his time to the officiating of bouts at all levels of the Association.

On the international stage, Joe’s contribution to the leadership of IABA teams at benchmark tournaments was immense. He led teams over a period of in excess of two decades at European and World level, from Junior to Elite, including the European Championships in Poland in 2003, the European Youth Championships in 2011, the European Junior Championships in Russia in 2018 and the 2020 Elite World Championships.

His greatest honour as Team Manager was to lead Team Ireland at all Olympic qualification tournaments and training camps in the Rio cycle, culminating in management of the team during the Rio 2016 Olympics.

Shortly thereafter, in 2017, Joe was elected Vice President of the IABA. A Lifetime Services to Boxing Award was bestowed upon Joe in 2023 in recognition of his dedication to our sport, and our community.

Joe is predeceased by his beloved wife, Breege, and is survived by his children Cathriona, Paul, Brian, IABA Director, Fiona, son- and daughters-in-law grandchildren,  nieces, nephews, relatives, and a wide circle of friends.

Funeral arrangements have not yet been announced.