The undisputed lightweight champion, Katie Taylor, is one of the biggest names in female boxing. The Irish-born fighter has an illustrious fighting record of 20-0. However, it hasn’t always been so glorious for Taylor. The 35-year-old has overcome extreme hardships to reach the heights she has reached today.

During the press conference of her highly anticipated fight against Amanda Serrano, Eddie Hearn shared an inspiring story about Taylor’s beginning.

Katie Taylor fought as a boy

Katie Taylor didn’t have a typical route to the top, like the current young female boxers. She had to go through very difficult times during the start of her amateur career. Eddie Hearn shared the story of how the Irish-born fighter had to pretend to be a boy to fight.

He stated, “In 2002 Katie Taylor walked through the doors of Bray boxing club but before she walked through the door, she had to put a head guard on and pretend that she was a boy because girl’s and women’s boxing was banned in Ireland.”

According to Hearn, Taylor fought against the boys in her amateur career under the moniker of ‘Kay Taylor’. It is unimaginable the challenges she has faced to go from pretending to be a boy to being the undisputed lightweight champion.

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All in all, the 35-year-old will be putting her legacy on the line against the seven-weight champion Amanda Serrano in the biggest fight in female boxing history on April 30, 2022.

How Taylor revolutionized female boxing

Taylor is a role model to all young boxers, as she has changed the sport of female boxing entirely. Hearn stated that after winning world championships Taylor asked the IOC, the Olympic Committee, to include women’s boxing in the Olympics. However, they denied her requests many times.

Finally, they asked Taylor to fight in an exhibition match. According to Eddie Hearn, after watching her, the Olympic Committee said, “Women’s boxing is in the Olympics.” Taylor went on to win the gold medal for Ireland in the 2012 London Olympics.

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What do you think of Katie Taylor’s inspiring story? Let us know in the comments below.