A 30-year-old man has died in an early morning shooting at a boxing club in Ireland, owned by Pete Taylor, father of Katie Taylor
AN OLYMPIC boxing champion's dad has been wounded and another man killed in a shooting at a boxing club in Ireland this morning.
Pete Taylor, whose daughter Katie Taylor is unified lightweight world champion and won gold for Ireland at the London 2012 Olympics, was shot at his boxing gym Bray Boxing Club in County Wicklow.
A 30-year-old man died after he was shot in the head, at 6.55am today.
Mr Taylor, 57, reportedly suffered serious injuries after he was shot in the arm and it deflected in his chest and another man, 35, was blasted in the leg.
Irish police said that the suspected attacker, who was dressed in black, marched into the club and opened fire with a handgun - with witnesses reporting hearing 'six or seven' shots.
The gunman - who is believed to have been wearing a balaclava or helmet - then fled the scene in a silver-coloured Volkswagen Caddy with Northern Ireland registration plates.
Police sealed of a street in Dublin where a car matching the description was parked this afternoon.
About 15 to 20 people are believed to have been in the club at the time and the dead man was reportedly on a treadmill when he was shot.
Another man is understood to have suffered a cut or graze as he dived away from the flying bullets.
Mr Taylor is reported to lead a popular bootcamp at around 7am each day - scheduled for shortly after the shooting.
Katie previously trained at Bray Boxing Club, but no longer has any involvement with the gym. It is understood she is currently training in the United States.
The boxing club underwent a major renovation and upgrade in 2014.
Garda Supt Patrick Ward told reporters there was no known motive for the attack and police were unaware of any threats to Mr Taylor or to anyone else involved with the club.
He said the injuries to Mr Taylor and the other man aren't thought to be life-threatening.
He said: "We are not giving out full details of the injuries received - what we can say is they are not life threatening.
"They are very, very serious but they are not life threatening at the moment as we understand it."
The assailant may have been wearing a high visibility yellow jacket.
Mr Ward said the dead man was attending a regular fitness session.
"This man was just using the gym like anyone else before he was unfortunately killed," he said.
He added: "It was a normal session on a normal day and it was being undertaken by people who normally undertake that session in the early hours of the morning.
"This came totally out of the blue - it was a normal day for all of those people in the gym."
Elizabeth Tynnan, who works in her family’s factory next to the club, told she saw people being taken away in ambulances this morning when she arrived.
She said: “It’s crazy, I could have been in the middle of it.”
Bray resident Anthony Connor told the : "I heard a load of shots, maybe six or seven shots.
"It was alarming. You don't wake up and think you're going to have a triple shooting here in Bray."
He said he didn't see the shooter leave the scene but did witness one of the injured men stumble out the club, with wounds to his leg.
Another local said: "I could see the guards, ambulances here. Then someone told me there was a shooting. Someone said it was three young guys.
"It gives Bray a bad name, we don't need it, everyone has the same feeling about it."
A Garda (Irish Police) helicopter was seen circling the scene shortly after the shooting as part of the manhunt.
A Garda spokesperson said: "Gardaí are at the scene of a shooting incident at Bray Boxing Club in The Harbour, Bray, Co. Wicklow.
"The incident happened at about 6.55am. The suspect left the scene in a white or silver van, possibly Ford make and bearing British number plates.
They later added: "Gardaí can confirm that one man aged 30 has died following a shooting incident in Bray, Co. Wicklow this morning.
"The body of the deceased remains at the scene pending the arrival of the State Pathologist and a technical examination of the area is being carried out by Garda Crime Scene Examiners.
"Two other men, aged 35 and 57, who were injured in the incident have been taken to hospital."
The chairman of Bray Municipal Council, Chris Fox, confirmed that Mr Taylor was one of those shot.
Fellow councillor Michael O'Connor added: "Pete Taylor was shot."
The body of the man killed was removed from the boxing club at around 2pm and taken from the scene in a blacked out vehicle.
Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan described the incident as "shocking".
He is appealing for anyone with information to contact gardai.
Sinn Féin TD for Wicklow/East Carlow John Brady said: "Absolutely shocking news coming from Bray Boxing club this morning. Another dark day for Bray."
Ireland's health minister, Simon Harris, who represents the constituency of Wicklow, tweeted: "Shocking news in Bray this morning. I have no doubt that the Gardai are doing all they can to apprehend those responsible."
Gardai are appealing for anyone with information to contact Bray Garda Station on 01 666 5300.
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