PAT McCORMACK pushed his Olympic claims as he helped the British Lionhearts boxing squad claim a 5-0 victory over the Mexico Guerreros in London.

McCormack, who hails from Birtley ABC, is hoping to represent Team GB at light-welterweight in Rio, having claimed a silver medal at last year’s European Championships.

He took on the highly-rated Raul Curiel, who has already claimed a guaranteed Olympic qualifying place, in the third fight of the night as part of the World Series of Boxing, which began last month.

His dominance was evident from the very first round, and having forced Curiel onto the back foot from an early stage of proceedings, he eventually claimed a unanimous points win.

There were further victories for Galal Yafai, Qais Ashfaq, Antony Fowler and Lawrence Okolie as the British squad underlined their strength in depth less than six months before the start of the 2016 Games.

The British Lionhearts, who have also featured Darlington’s Troy Williamson, return to action when they take on the USA Knockouts on Thursday, March 3 at York Hall.

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HARROGATE’S Oliver Dingley will become the first diver to represent Ireland at the Olympics since 1968 after securing an automatic qualifying place at the recent Rio World Cup.

Dingley, who was born and raised in North Yorkshire, but who left the region after failing to qualify for the British team at the 2012 Games, switched nationalities to represent Ireland in 2014.

The Northern Echo:

He has subsequently relocated to Ireland, and finished 11th in the 3m springboard at the Rio test event, with the top 18 divers automatically qualifying for the Olympics.

Ripon’s Jack Laugher is already guaranteed a spot in the 3m springboard thanks to his bronze medal at last year’s World Championships, and he will now be joined by Dingley, who was formerly his training partner at Leeds.

“I’m exhausted,” said Dingley, after his 11th-place finish was confirmed. “It was probably the most stressful four hours of my life, but absolutely amazing.

“The team effort, from me, my coach, everyone back home, physios, strength and conditioning, psychology – just to get me to Rio has been absolutely amazing. To qualify a spot for Ireland is fantastic, I can’t believe it.”