[extracts from the Appletree Press title Legends of Irish Boxing published by Appletree Press]

Kenny Beattie, a skilled southpaw from the Shore Road in Belfast, was a member of the 'Magnificent Seven' - but not, needless to say, in any acting sense. In 1960, the classic western of that name depicted the exploits of seven gunslingers sent to defend a small Mexican village against a gang of outlaws. In 1978 Northern Ireland sent seven of its most talented pugilists to make their presence felt at the Edmonton Commonwealth Games. Seven artisans, under the watchful eye of shrewd coach Gerry Storey, who made a marked impression in the Canadian city. When the dust had settled by 13th August, justice had been done in the ring and the Magnificent Seven flew off into the sunset.
Barry McGuigan was the most famous member of the merry band which travelled to Canada that August. Add into the mix, names such as Hugh Russell, Kenny Webb, Jimmy Carson, Gerry Hamill, Tony McAvoy and Kenny Beattie and the squad became a very formidable bunch. Immediately dubbed the 'Magnificent Seven' in the local press, by the closing ceremony of the Games, the boxers had achieved two golds, one silver and one bronze medal. Kenny Beattie, the silver medallist in the welterweight division, led the Northern Ireland team around the Clarke Stadium in the closing ceremony. For a man from the White City club in Belfast, with the Northern Ireland flag in his hand, it was an unforgettable experience. Beattie would have made it a triple gold for the boxers, but for one small but significant detail: the person who beat the Shore Road man was a classy Jamaican fighter by the name of Mike McCallum; a true legend in the making.
Born in the Mount Vernon district of Belfast in 1956, to Jackie and Florence Beattie, Kenny was first to taste boxing success in the White City club in the now redeveloped area of Belfast known as Sailortown. It was a habit of losing unofficial bouts to his younger brother George, in the living room of their two-bedroom house, that made Beattie initially consider the fight game as a healthy option.
"Our living room was very small and we lived in a two-up, two-down, house I recall," said Beattie. "My father used to put the corner of the armchair against the settee and that formed an artificial boxing ring where George, my younger brother, and I would fight the bit out on most Sunday afternoons. George was at the boxing club and was beating me easily, so I thought that I'd take the game seriously, initially for the sake of family pride."
With Beattie soon a fully-fledged member of the boxing club, parity in the boxing stakes was soon restored in the family home. He went on to make his mark in the boys' and juvenile championships in both Ulster and Ireland. By 1977 Kenny had claimed the Ulster senior welterweight crown and went on to Dublin to win the first of his four Irish titles. In 1978, as Ulster champion, Beattie was a natural choice for the Northern Ireland team with Gerry Storey as trainer setting the squad on track for glory at the Edmonton Games.
…
The opening ceremony of the games took place on Thursday, 3rd August. The seventy strong Northern Ireland team was warmly received in the packed arena, which was filled with its fair share of Ulster exiles. The team's bowlers, cyclists, swimmers and runners all got down to business as the boxers awaited their draws…for the Ulster boxers a quadruple gold medal haul became a possibility.
The party continued into the semi-finals for Beattie as his Welsh opponent Tony Freal was beaten convincingly on points. In the second round the referee stopped the bout to have a look at a cut on Beattie's eye, but it was determined to be a minor nick. The judges scored the fight unanimously in the Belfastman's favour and the crack at the gold was on the cards.
"I though that the fight against Freal was the biggest one to get over, and the sense of relief at getting to the final was great," he recalled. "Now I felt I could relax a bit and just concentrate on the final."
…
Awaiting Beattie in the final was the formidable Jamaican, Mike McCallum, who would go on to become a world champion at three different weights. However, future legend or not, Beattie was ready.
"I did not know who McCallum was but he was the hot favourite for sure," said Beattie. "The day before the fight I got word that he was the class act who had been to the Olympic Games and that got to me a bit. I lost the fight for sure, but I regret that I didn't follow the orders that Gerry Storey had given me beforehand. He told me to box McCallum and not to get too involved, but I went head-hunting, as he had been cut in the eye in his previous fight. He was a class act alright and he went on to prove that as a paid fighter."
…
The net result for the Magnificent Seven, regardless of the idiosyncrasies of the judges, stood at two golds, one silver and one bronze medal. Quite an achievement, when one considers that the rest of the Northern Ireland Commonwealth Games team could muster only an additional bronze to add to the boxers' total.
…
Kenny Beattie returned to the White City club but never acquired the appetite for the professional ranks. In a strange twist of fate, Beattie was to meet up with his old foe, Mike McCallum, while attending a Lennox Lewis title defence in London.
"I was over for a Lewis fight and Barney Eastwood was there and he called McCallum over and asked him if he knew who I was," he recalled. "Mike was all over me and he asked me how much money I had made as a professional. He was staggered when he found out that I had stayed an amateur. But he is a real nice guy and never forgot me, which was nice."
…
Time has not dimmed the memories or the enjoyment of his amateur career. However, top of the memories are the six weeks in the high summer of 1978, when Kenny Beattie et al rode their luck in Canada as the Magnificent Seven.

From the Appletree Press title: Legends of Irish Boxing by Barry Flynn.