Egan had said that he wanted to stay at amateur level and compete at the 2012 Olympics in London but his failure to turn up for Ireland's match against the United States last Friday led to fresh speculation that he may turn professional.

But Walsh is confident that Egan will remain as part of Ireland's high performance unit.

He said: "You can take it that Kenny will be returning to the high performance unit.

"What has happened is a mere blip that has been blown up out of all proportions by certain elements of the media who were feeding off it.

"To say they have made a mountain out of a molehill would be an understatement.

"After the Olympics Games we all needed a break.

"There was always going to be a lot of speculation when Kenny did not show up for last week's international but there is an explanation for that.

"His Sports Council funding is not an issue.

"At the moment we are getting the high performance squad together.

"We will take 20 boxers to Belfast this weekend for the first big get-together and Kenny will be included in that squad."