Barry McGuigan

Finbarr Patrick McGuigan MBE (born 28 February 1961), known as Barry McGuigan and nicknamed The Clones Cyclone, is a former Irish professional boxer who became a World Boxing Association featherweight champion.

McGuigan was born in Clones, Ireland, son of singer Pat McGuigan. He represented Northern Ireland in the Commonwealth Games at Edmonton 1978 and represented Ireland at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. Pat McGuigan sang “Danny Boy” before several of his son’s fights.

During his career, McGuigan fought at a number of venues in Ireland and Britain. He attracted an enormous following in the mid-1980s, particularly to the King’s Hall in Belfast which he normally filled to capacity. McGuigan is a Roman Catholic, and at a time when Roman Catholics and Protestants were clashing during The Troubles in Northern Ireland, McGuigan married a Protestant woman, Sandra, and they have been married for 28 years.