A West Belfast boxing club has joined up with two other gyms in Dublin and Waterford as part of a cultural sporting exchange involving young people in Palestine.
St Paul's ABC in Andersonstown will work with Esker Boxing Club (Dublin) and Saviours Crystal Boxing Club (Waterford) as part of The Shamrock and Olive Tree Boxing Project.
The collaboration aims to identify shared values and identity through the art of boxing with the aim of immersing young people in new cultural contexts, and will liaise closely with partner club El Barrio in Ramallah which is located in the Holy Land.
St Paul's coach Ralph McKay says it is an exciting project that his club is delighted to be involved in.
"It is a project we have put together with boxing clubs in Ramallah," McKay told Belfast Live.
"They haven't much international experience, in terms of an international team. They are more club boxers.
"We set up a committee and looked at different aspects of boxing and culture, and we aim to go over there and then have some Palestinian boxers visit Ireland.
"There is a big cultural aspect to it, and we want to try and bring boxing forward and help develop the sport in Ramallah. We don't know what level they're at or how they are set up.
"With the Troubles here, boxing was always a driving vehicle to promote reconciliation, and hopefully we can take that same approach to Ramallah who have had their own conflict over the years."
A travelling group from Ireland is hoping to travel to Palestine this August, with a reverse trip planned for 2023 when a number of boxers and officials from clubs in Ramallah will visit Belfast, Dublin and Waterford.
"We plan to go over this August, and we have three members of the club intending to visit Ramallah," McKay added.
"There will be representatives from the other two clubs in Waterford and Dublin, and some boxers will go over as well.
"It will all cost money, but we aim to set up a fundraising page to help pay for the trip, and also to help maybe finance some equipment for the clubs in Ramallah.
"They might not have much, so we can hopefully help them in that regard. We want to try and help kids in Palestine, both physical and mentally. Because boxing is a great release valve, as are many sports.
"We had the Troubles here in the 1970s and 80s and boxing brought people together. They went to watch fights at Shankill Leisure Centre of Andytown Leisure Centre.
"Hopefully we can implement something in Ramallah that can benefit them in the future.
"So the aim is for us to go over there this summer, and then we hope to bring a team over to Belfast in August 2023 so they can get a good look at our clubs.
"We can take them around the peace walls in Belfast, and we intend visiting a lot of historical sites when we visit Ramallah."
