Katie’s dream within reach

WORLD champ Katie Taylor will have a golden ticket to the next level of her brilliant boxing career – the 2012 Olympics.

Women’s boxing was granted a place in the pantheon of Olympic sports, and already the young Bray athlete has been tipped to make solid gold history.

Pound for pound she is regarded by the cognoscenti as one of the best boxers in the ring today, male or female.

And the 22-year-old world, European and European Union lightweight champion’s achievements, in what has for aeons been a male-dominated sport, give credence to that.

Last April she not only won another gold medal, but was also voted the best boxer, male or female, at a prestigious international tournament in Istanbul, Turkey.

Winning gold in St Petersburg this summer was the 39th boxing accolade which Taylor has accumulated since she first stepped into the ring – at age 15 – in an officially sanctioned women’s bout held at the National Stadium in Dublin.

Yesterday, the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) executive board ruled that boxing would no longer be a male-only event from the London Games.

“I’m absolutely thrilled. This is a dream come true, not only for me, but for female boxers throughout the world who have worked so hard to gain Olympic status,” Katie said.

Women will be allowed fight at the flyweight 48kg-51kg, lightweight 56kg-60kg and middleweight 69kg-75kg divisions at the Games.

Welcoming the IOC’s decision Sport Minister Martin Cullen said: “This certainly augurs well for the future of women’s boxing. Ireland’s Katie Taylor, who has been a dominant force in this field in recent years, will no doubt excel in this arena.

“Katie has numerous European and world titles to her name and I have every confidence that in 2012 she will add an Olympic gold to her cache.”