KELLIE HARRINGTON is the golden girl who made history by defeating China's Wenlu Yang in the lightweight final tonight. The win makes it back to back Olympic gold medals for the Dubliner who also won gold at Tokyo 2020.
This was a rematch of the 2016 World Championship final, which Yang won on points. He ran out of the blocks here, looking to put pressure on the Irish woman. How much money they could have taken from their last fight eight years ago remains to be seen.
Alternating between southpaw and orthodox, the Tallaght talent had time to spare as he cruised out of the opening round 4-1. Harrington's hand speed and shot selection were good in the second as he took out Yang, who continued to rush forward. Jumping off his toes, Harrington dominated again in the second round.
Yang threw the kitchen sink at Harrington in the third and final round, cutting the score, but couldn't get that big score. Kellie Harrington won by split decision, following in the footsteps of legendary female boxer Katie Taylor to become a country star.
The judges' scorecards read as follows: Babak Bordbar 29-28, Jung Sook Cho 28-29, Cem Dunar 29-28, Susann Kopke 29-28 and Emerson Pastor 29-28.
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