Photos show boxing club where Kellie Harrington started has no female toilets or showers

Corinthians Boxing Club in Summerhill has seen an increase in membership, particularly among young girls, since Harrington’s success in the Tokyo Olympics last summer.

However, there are no girls’ toilets or shower facilities at the north inner city club, founded in 1926, despite the fact that up to 70pc of its members are female.

Joe Carabini, who has set up a fundraising page to support the club, said the toilets are “in a pretty bad way” and the girls’ changing area is just a five by four-foot room.

“The girls have to use the boys’ toilets, which means somebody has to stand guard at the door for them,” he said.

“It’s a terrible situation and far from ideal.

“The club was once dominated by men, but it’s mostly women and girls boxing here since Kellie took home gold,” he said.

“They all have hopes and dreams of following in her footsteps and the club doesn’t want to turn any of the kids away.

“Some of the girls also play for Shelbourne Football Club so the facilities here are dire compared to what they’re used to.”

Mr Carabini, a builder, has offered to carry out improvement works at the clubhouse himself and is aiming to raise €30,000.

He claimed they had reached “a dead end” in their attempts to secure Government funding for improved facilities at the clubhouse, located in a former warehouse building off Buckingham Street.

“The plan is to do the work over the summer months after boxing stops in June,” he said. “So far, the response to the fundraising appeal has not been that good.”

Mr Carabini, who has three grandchildren training at Corinthians Boxing Club, said any additional funds raised would to go towards the purchase of new equipment.

Last week, Dublin City Council announced that Kellie will be awarded the Honorary Freedom of the City of Dublin in a ceremony on June 11.

Donations can be made to the Corinthians fundraising page here.