Boxer Barry McGuigan leads tributes to GAA star who died after 6-week cancer battle

25-year-old Dion Conlon died in the early hours of Monday morning after a short battle with adenocarcinoma, a rare form of cancer that affected his lungs.

He had been diagnosed with the illness just six weeks ago and was undergoing treatment in Liverpool before his death.

Champion boxer and fellow Monaghan man Barry McGuigan was one of the first people to pay tribute to the young sports star this week.

In a heartfelt tweet, the Clones native wrote: “I put a tweet out the other day to try to rally support for a young Killeevan man called Dion Conlon (25) who had a rare type of cancer. Tragically Dion died yesterday. My deepest sympathies go out to his devastated parents Brian & Alison & siblings Jordan & Chelsea.”

Dion's GAA club, Killeevan Sarsfields, also paid tribute to their teammate, writing: “It’s with great sadness that we, Killeevan Sarsfields GAA club, announce the death of a young Killeevan man, Dion Conlon in the early hours of this morning 29/08/22 after a short illness.

“Dion was a very happy, positive person who made friends easily and returned their friendship with interest. He played football with our club throughout every age group and was a key player on the double winning Reserve team in 2015.

“The son of Brian and Alison and brother of Jordan and Chelsea we offer our sincere condolences to them at this terrible time. May he rest in peace. Suaimhneas síoraí do.”

Last Thursday, Dion’s family set up a GoFundMe page to cover the cost of his treatment abroad with more than 600 people contributing €41,430 to the cause.

The 25-year-old was due to start chemotherapy this week but sadly passed away before he could begin treatment.

Updating donators on the GoFundMe page, Dion’s family wrote: “On behalf of Dion and all the Conlon Family, we would like to express our sincere gratitude for all your kind donations, messages, thoughts and prayers.

“Dion and ourselves are totally overwhelmed by the massive response that came from every corner of the world, this shows Dion in his true light; a light that we hope continues to shine brightly on us all; continue to be yourself our very own angel.”