Ireland has a new world champion and her name is Kellie Harrington.
Dublin’s Harrington has won gold in the lightweight division of the AIBA Women’s World Boxing Championships with a stunning victory over Thailand’s Sudaporn Seesondee on Saturday afternoon.
The wait between the final bell and the judges’ decision was a nervy one for Harrington, who has become just the third Irish boxer to win a gold medal at world level after Katie Taylor and Michael Conlan.
Harrington’s win comes four years to the day since Taylor’s fifth straight world gold medal at 60kgs and the Dubliner proved that amateur boxing is still alive and well in Ireland after upgrading from her silver medal at light welterweight two years ago.
Amazing job by Kellie Harrington the AIBA Women’s World Champion winning Gold #boxing#iaba#20×20#ireland#sport pic.twitter.com/JfURkHx7lJ
— IABA (@IABABOXING) November 24, 2018
It was tough to definitively give either fighter an advantage in a tight opening frame but Harrington enjoyed more success in the second round. In the third, Seesondee was at her most aggressive but failed to find a home for her heaviest shots.
Harrington just about did enough in New Delhi and there was an outpouring of delight when the judges’ scores of 30-27, 29-28, 28-29, 28-29, 28-29 were read out, giving Harrington a 3-2 win.
There was a healthy Irish contingent in the venue, with former super bantamweight world champion Bernard Dunne roaring louder than anyone as Harrington claimed her biggest win to date.
https://twitter.com/Bernard_Dunne/status/1066323293341270016
