Last year, Katie Taylor was named Female Boxer of the Year by the World Boxing Association (WBA). She is one of the biggest names in women’s boxing but is also an all-around star athlete, having competed in soccer as well.
She started throwing punches as a child with her father who was previously an outstanding amateur boxer. However, in her home country Ireland the practice of this sport was limited for women, so she turned to soccer.
When she was just 14, she joined the Irish national soccer set-up. She competed with the Under-17 and the Under-19s and represented the country at senior level eleven times, with a final appearance from the sub bench in 2009 in the World Cup qualifier against Kazakhstan.
But while she kept a top-level soccer career, she also managed to box as an amateur and won gold in five world championships, six European Championships, and five EU Championships.
The tour de force of her amateur career happened in 2012 when she became the first ever Olympic female lightweight gold medalist. Not only did she contribute to getting women's boxing introduced to the Olympics, but she is more generally credited with enhancing the visibility of women's boxing in Ireland and abroad.
“I want to inspire the next generation to dream big dreams. I just want those young girls to know they can do the same and even better than I've done,” she said.
In 2016, after having enjoyed a successful amateur career, she switched to the professional ranks. Three years later, she became one of only eight boxers, male or female, to have ever held the four major world titles in boxing—WBA, WBC, IBF and WBO—at the same time.
“I want to go down in the history books as one of the greatest female boxers of all time, and I think I'm on the right path.”
Earlier this year, she reclaimed number 1 spot on ESPN’s rankings as the world’s best pound-for-pound female fighter. From her athletic career so far, there is no doubt she will be remembered long after she hangs up her gloves.