Katie Taylor facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Katie Taylor
Katie Taylor in 2012
Statistics
Nickname(s)	KT The Bray Bomber
Rated at	Lightweight Super-lightweight
Height	5 ft 5 in
Reach	66 in
Born	(1986-07-02) 2 July 1986 (age 39) Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	26
Wins	25
Wins by KO	6
Losses	1
Medal record Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 1 0 0 World Championships 5 0 1 European Championships 6 0 0 EU Championships 5 0 0 European Games 1 0 0 Women's amateur boxing Representing  Ireland Olympic Games Gold 2012 London Lightweight World Championships Gold 2006 New Delhi Lightweight Gold 2008 Ningbo Lightweight Gold 2010 Barbados Lightweight Gold 2012 Qinhuangdao Lightweight Gold 2014 Jeju Lightweight Bronze 2016 Astana Lightweight European Games Gold 2015 Baku Lightweight European Championships Gold 2005 Tønsberg Lightweight Gold 2006 Warsaw Lightweight Gold 2007 Vejle Lightweight Gold 2009 Mykolaiv Lightweight Gold 2011 Rotterdam Lightweight Gold 2014 Bucharest Lightweight EU Championships Gold 2008 Liverpool Lightweight Gold 2009 Pazardzhik Lightweight Gold 2010 Keszthely Lightweight Gold 2011 Katowice Lightweight Gold 2013 Keszthely Lightweight

Katie Taylor (born 2 July 1986) is a famous Irish professional boxer and a former footballer. She was the undisputed world champion in the lightweight division from 2019 to 2024. She has also been the undisputed world champion in the super lightweight division since 2023.

Katie is very popular in Ireland. Many people believe she helped make women's boxing more well-known around the world. She is seen as one of the best Irish athletes of her time.

In her amateur boxing career, Katie won many gold medals. She won five gold medals at the Women's World Championships. She also won gold six times at the European Championships. In 2012, she was the flag bearer for Ireland at the London Olympics opening ceremony. She then won the gold medal in the lightweight boxing division.

Katie became a professional boxer in 2016. She won the WBA lightweight title in 2017. The next year, she won the IBF title. In 2019, she beat Delfine Persoon and became the eighth boxer ever to hold all four major world titles at the same time. These titles are from the IBF, WBA, WBC, and WBO. In November 2023, she won even more titles at super lightweight. She beat Chantelle Cameron in Dublin to get the IBF, IBO, WBA, WBC, and WBO titles.

As of March 2023, Katie Taylor is ranked as the world's best active female lightweight boxer. She is also considered one of the best female boxers across all weight classes. She is known for her fast and aggressive boxing style.

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Katie Taylor's Early Life

Katie Taylor was born on 2 July 1986 in Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland. Her mother, Bridget, is Irish, and her father, Pete Taylor, was born in England. Katie has an older sister, Sarah, and two older brothers, Lee and Peter. Her brother Peter is a mathematics professor.

Her father, Pete, settled in Bray after meeting Katie's mother. In 1986, he became an Irish senior light heavyweight boxing champion. He later became Katie's full-time boxing coach. Katie's mother, Bridget, also became interested in boxing. She was one of the first female referees and judges in Ireland.

From 1999 to 2005, Katie went to St. Kilian's Community School in Bray. She played boxing and association football at school. She also played ladies' Gaelic football and camogie for local clubs. Katie was also part of a local athletics club. She was offered sports scholarships by several American colleges. However, she chose to attend University College Dublin. She later decided not to finish her studies there as her sports career grew.

Amateur Boxing Career

Katie Taylor started boxing in 1998 when she was 12 years old. Her father coached her and her brothers at St Fergal's Boxing Club in Bray. In 2001, at age 15, she took part in the first official female boxing match in Ireland. She won against Alanna Audley from Belfast.

Winning European and World Titles

Katie's first big win was at the 2005 European Amateur Championships in Norway. She won the gold medal in the lightweight class. Later in 2005, she reached the quarter-finals at the World Amateur Championships in Russia.

In 2006, Katie won her second gold medal at the European Amateur Championships in Poland. She also won the tournament's Best Boxer award. At the 2006 World Women's Boxing Championship in India, Katie became Ireland's first World Champion. She won the 60 kg final. In 2007, she won her third European Championship title in Denmark.

In 2008, Katie won her first European Union gold medal in England. She then won her second World title in China. This was her 100th boxing match.

Becoming a Public Figure

On 21 March 2009, Katie fought Caroline Barry of the United States in Dublin. She won the fight and was amazed by the support from Irish boxing fans. She said it was an "amazing experience."

Katie continued to win many titles. She defended her European Union title in 2009. In 2010, she won her third World title in Barbados. This was her 100th career win. She also won gold at the EU Women Boxing Championships in Poland in 2011. In 2012, Katie won her fourth World title in China.

Olympic Gold Medal in London

Taylor (in red) vs. Chorieva at the 2012 Olympic semi-finals

Katie qualified for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. This was the first time women's boxing was included in the Olympics. People in her hometown of Bray gathered to watch her fights on big screens.

On 6 August, Katie won her first Olympic fight against Natasha Jonas. This win guaranteed her at least an Olympic bronze medal. In the semi-final on 8 August, she beat Mavzuna Chorieva. This secured her at least an Olympic silver medal.

On 9 August 2012, Katie defeated Sofya Ochigava in the final. She won an Olympic gold medal, becoming the first ever Olympic female lightweight champion. When she returned to Dublin, she waved an Irish flag from the plane's cockpit.

More Amateur Success

On 24 November 2014, Katie won her fifth straight lightweight title in South Korea. In 2015, she won the lightweight title at the first European Games in Azerbaijan.

On 24 May 2016, Katie qualified for the 2016 Summer Olympics. However, she lost in the semi-finals of the World Championships a few days later. At the 2016 Summer Olympics on 15 August 2016, Katie lost in the quarter-finals and did not win a medal.

Professional Boxing Career

Katie Taylor started her professional boxing career on 26 November 2016. She won her first fight by technical knockout (TKO) in the third round. Her second professional fight was on 10 December 2016. She won by points decision.

She won two more fights in March 2017. Then, on 29 April 2017, she fought Nina Meinke for a WBA title. Katie won by TKO in the seventh round. This win meant she could fight for the WBA female lightweight title.

Becoming WBA Lightweight Champion

After another win in July, Katie faced Anahí Ester Sánchez for the vacant WBA female lightweight title on 28 October 2017. Katie won by a clear decision, earning her first world title.

Her first defense of the title was on 13 December against Jessica McCaskill. Katie won by a unanimous decision, keeping her title.

Unifying World Titles

On 28 April 2018, Katie fought Victoria Bustos to unify the WBA and IBF lightweight titles. Katie won by a wide unanimous decision, adding the IBF title to her collection.

She successfully defended her titles three more times in 2018. She beat Kimberly Connor, Cindy Serrano, and Eva Wahlström.

Katie's first fight of 2019 was another unification bout. She faced Rose Volante for the WBO female lightweight title on 15 March. Katie won by TKO in the ninth round. This gave her a third world title. After the fight, Katie said she wanted to become the undisputed female lightweight champion. This meant winning all four major world titles.

Becoming Undisputed Champion

In April 2019, Katie and Delfine Persoon agreed to a lightweight title unification fight. It took place on 1 June at Madison Square Garden. All four major titles were on the line.

The fight was very close and intense. Katie won by a majority decision, becoming the first undisputed female lightweight champion. Some people thought Persoon should have won, but the judges decided in Katie's favor.

Winning Titles in Two Weight Classes

For her next fight, Katie moved up in weight. She faced Christina Linardatou for the WBO female junior-welterweight title on 2 November 2019. Katie won by unanimous decision. With this win, she became only the third Irish boxer to win world titles in two different weight divisions.

Defending Undisputed Lightweight Titles

Katie was supposed to fight Amanda Serrano in May 2020, but it was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, she had a rematch with Delfine Persoon on 22 August 2020. Katie won by unanimous decision, and Persoon agreed that Katie had clearly won.

On 14 November 2020, Katie defended her titles against Miriam Gutiérrez. She won by unanimous decision.

Katie then defended her titles against Natasha Jonas on 1 May 2021. Katie had beaten Jonas before at the 2012 Olympics. Katie won this fight by a close unanimous decision.

Her next defense was against Jennifer Han on 4 September 2021. Katie won clearly by unanimous decision. She then defended her titles for the fifth time against Firuza Sharipova on 11 December 2021, winning by unanimous decision.

Historic Fight Against Amanda Serrano

Katie defended her undisputed lightweight titles against seven-division world champion Amanda Serrano on 30 April 2022. This fight was historic because it was the first women's boxing match to headline Madison Square Garden. It was called the 'biggest women's fight of all time'. Katie won by a split decision, even though she was hurt in the fifth round. The fight was named Fight of the Year by Sports Illustrated.

Katie successfully defended her undisputed lightweight titles for the seventh and final time against Karen Carabajal on 29 October 2022. She won by unanimous decision.

Return to Super-Lightweight

Katie was scheduled to fight Amanda Serrano again in Dublin on 20 May 2023. However, Serrano got injured, so the fight was canceled. On March 2, Katie challenged the undisputed super-lightweight champion Chantelle Cameron to fight instead. Cameron accepted, and the fight took place on 20 May 2023 in Dublin. This was Katie's first professional fight in her home country. Katie lost the fight by majority decision, which was her first professional loss.

Rematch and Becoming Two-Weight Undisputed Champion

After her loss, Katie asked for a rematch with Chantelle Cameron. The second fight happened on 25 November 2023, again in Dublin. Katie won by a majority decision, giving Cameron her first professional loss. By winning, Katie became the undisputed super-lightweight champion. This made her a two-weight undisputed champion, meaning she held all major titles in two different weight classes. She was the second female boxer, and the first Irish female boxer, to achieve this.

Continuing Rivalry with Amanda Serrano

Katie was scheduled to defend her super lightweight title in a rematch against Amanda Serrano on 15 November 2024. The fight took place at AT&T Stadium in Texas. Katie won by unanimous decision, keeping her titles. Netflix reported that this fight was the most-watched women's professional sporting event in U.S. history.

A third fight against Amanda Serrano was scheduled for 11 July 2025 at Madison Square Garden. This fight headlined a historic all-women's boxing event. Katie successfully defended her undisputed super lightweight title by majority decision, winning the trilogy against her long-time rival.

Professional Boxing Record

Football Career

Playing for Clubs

As a schoolgirl, Katie played association football for several teams. She played with boys in some leagues. She also represented her league in a competition and won the Player of the Year award.

At a higher level, Katie played for clubs like Lourdes Celtic and Peamount United. She played in cup finals with St James's Gate and Peamount United. In 2009, her boxing commitments meant she missed a cup final with St Catherine's. In 2010, Katie was part of the Peamount United team that won three titles: the Dublin Women's Soccer League, the DWSL Premier Cup, and the FAI Women's Cup.

Playing for Ireland

Katie represented the Republic of Ireland women's national football team at different age levels. She played for the under-17 team when she was 14. She started playing for the under-19 team at 15. Katie said her boxing training helped her football because it made her strong. In 2003, she scored four goals for the under-19 team in a qualifier.

Between 2006 and 2009, Katie played 11 games and scored 2 goals for the senior national team. Her first senior international game was in April 2006 against Switzerland. She scored her first senior international goal in April 2007 against Hungary. She scored her second goal in February 2008 against Italy. Her last international game was in September 2009.

Other Activities

In 2002, when she was 15, Katie appeared on a TV show called Sport Stream. She talked about her dream of going to the Olympics. In 2009, she was a coach on a TV show called Charity Lords of the Ring. She also appeared in a Lucozade Sport advertisement in 2011. In 2016, she became a brand ambassador for Its4women, an online insurance company.

Personal Life and Family

Katie Taylor and her family go to St. Mark's Church in Dublin. This church is part of a large Christian group called Assemblies of God.

In 2012, Katie released a book called My Olympic Dream. It was an illustrated memoir about her life. In 2018, a documentary called Katie was released. It showed her early life and her journey to her first title fight. Katie also likes the Irish language.

On 15 June 2018, Katie's father, Pete, was involved in an incident at a boxing club in Bray. He was shot but survived.

Katie Taylor is a cousin of UFC fighter Molly McCann.

Awards and Achievements

Katie Taylor has received many awards and honors for her amazing career.

Individual Awards

• 2004 FAI International Football Awards – Under-19 Women's International Player of the Year
• 2010 International Boxing Association (AIBA) World Female Boxer of the Year.
• 2012 People of the Year Awards – Sportsperson of the Year
• 2012 RTÉ Sports Person of the Year
• 2012 Irish Book Awards – Irish Sports Book
• 2013 Dublin City University Honorary degree
• 2014 The Irish Times/Irish Sports Council Sportswoman of the Year.
• 2019 BWAA – Christy Martin Award / Female Fighter of the Year
• 2020 RTÉ Sports Person of the Year
• 2022 RTÉ Sports Person of the Year
• 2025 ESPY Awards – Best Boxer

Boxing Medals

Images for kids

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  Katie Taylor in 2012

See also

In Spanish: Katie Taylor para niños