Pat McCormack returns to boxing action with victory and admits: I didn't sleep much after witnessing Westminster horror

Washington Olympian Pat McCormack, among the British boxers who witnessed PC Keith Palmer being stabbed to death outside the Houses of Parliament, helped the British Lionhearts secure a 5-0 win over Italia Thunder in last night's World Series of Boxing fixture at the York Hall in Bethnal green.
By The Newsroom
Published 24th Mar 2017, 05:15 BST
Updated 24th Mar 2017, 10:08 BST
Pat McCormackPat McCormack
Pat McCormack

Welterweight McCormack, 21, overcame Vincenzo Mangiacapre with a unanimous points triumph.

Reflecting on the scenes at Westminster, he said: “It was horrible. We were right in front of it. It was weird timing that we saw it all, but it’s not something anyone wants to see.

“I didn’t really sleep much.

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“My head was a bit all over and I couldn’t really stop thinking about it, but I’m just glad I’ve come, got the job done and the win.

“We had a meeting, a talk. The coaches handled it very well, got us through it.

“Tony (Davis, the team’s coach) was standing right next to us, and as everyone was running away he was running to aid. He saw a lot more than us and was a bit shook up. I respect him very much as a man for doing that.”

Birtley ABC lightweight Calum French, Muhammad Ali and Bulgarian Radoslav Pantaleev also secured unanimous points verdicts, while super-heavyweight Frazer Clarke suffered a second-round knockdown but recovered to earn a split-decision win.

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French did not share McCormack’s trouble sleeping but said: “It was the most tragic thing I’ve ever seen; it was horrible. We tried our best not to let it affect us. We tried to really concentrate, and focus on the boxing instead, but my heart goes out to those involved. What happened was a terrible, terrible, terrible event.”

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