LISTENING to professional boxer Michael Conlan talk, it very quickly becomes clear he is a man who wears his heart on his sleeve and pulls no punches when it comes to speaking his mind.
That passion isn’t reserved for just boxing, though. The proud Irishman is a lifelong Celtic fan and carries that pride with him into the ring, and that love of the Hoops was fostered in West Belfast where he was brought up.
“Everyone in my area was a Celtic fan,” said the featherweight boxer in an exclusive interview with the Celtic View. “I can’t imagine choosing any other team but there was no choice really. Where I was from, Celtic were the only team and we wouldn’t have had it any other way. The connection to the club is so strong and it means a lot to me coming from where I grew up.
“My first memory of Celtic was probably the 6-2 game in 2000. I was eight-years-old when that game took place. That’s actually one of my first sporting memories, never mind boxing or any other sport.
“I already supported Celtic but that game just captivated me. It was, and still is, one of the greatest sporting moments I’ve witnessed and it made me fall in love with Celtic so much.
“When Henrik chipped the keeper, my whole family were running around the house going crazy! The celebrating in our house was as if one of my brothers had won a world title!
“My brothers and I all had our Celtic tops on as kids all the time. Every family holiday growing up, all the brothers would get a photo together with the Celtic tops on.”
While the Hoops were ingrained in his life from an early age, Conlan’s passions extended beyond Celtic and the wider world of football.
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