NORTH-EAST duo Josh Kelly and Pat McCormack both missed out on the chance to secure an Olympic boxing place as they failed to win a medal at the World Amateur Championships in Doha.

Wearsider Kelly, who is a member of Houghton and District ABC, was selected in the middleweight class and got his campaign off to a superb start when he recorded a unanimous points verdict over Australian Nathan Webber.

He was similarly dominant when he booked a quarter-final spot with a convincing victory over New Zealander Joshua Nyiko, but he was unable to repeat the performance in the last eight.

Taking on Moroccan Mohammed Rabii, who was the number two seed, he was on the wrong end of some powerful shots.

He rallied in the latter stages of the contest, but continued to give away the odd shot and was eventually beaten by a unanimous decision.

McCormack, who is from Birtley and was part of the English team at last year’s Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, fought at welterweight in Doha.

He brushed aside Moldova’s Dmitri Galagot on the opening day of competition, but was unfortunate to be drawn against strongly-fancied Russian Vitaly Dunaytsev in the next round.

McCormack had fought Dunaytsev in the European Championships final, and the pair’s latest contest followed a familiarly frustrating pattern.

Despite appearing to control the majority of the fight, with his technique much sharper and cleaner than that of his opponent, McCormack was unable to persuade the judges that he should finish on top.

Both fighters have three more opportunities to claim an Olympic place, provided they hold on to their place on the British team.

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SEVEN North-East tumblers will be representing Great Britain in the World Tumbling Championships later this year.

The gymnasts, who are members of Deerness Gymnastics Academy in Ushaw Moor, have been selected on the British team to compete in Odense, Denmark, between November 26 and December 7.

Shanice Davidson (15), Georgia Clayton (17), Rachel Davies (17), David Richardson (14), Sophie Allen (13), Lydia Overal (12) and Lucia Woodhouse (12) have all been rewarded for their strong performances at the recent trials, and at the British Championships earlier this year.

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BILLINGHAM youngster Joe Clark has been named in England’s youth table tennis squad for the second season in succession.

The 15-year-old, who is a pupil at Northfield School, is in the development group, consisting of 17 players. The squad is completed by a 14-strong performance group.