Katie Taylor has successfully made weight for her undisputed light-welterweight championship fight against challenger Flora Pili. The weigh-in took place at a sun-drenched Trinity College in Dublin, drawing a large crowd of enthusiastic supporters eager to catch a glimpse of their national sporting hero.
Both fighters came in just under the 10st (63.5kg) limit. Taylor, a two-weight undisputed champion, has a perfect record of never missing weight in her 26 professional bouts. The occasion marked one of the final public appearances of her professional boxing career, with the 40-year-old athlete acknowledging the media obligations and weight-making aspects of the sport as elements she will not miss.
The fight is set to take place at the sold-out Croke Park stadium on Saturday, with all 80,000 tickets having been snapped up. The demand for Friday's ceremonial weigh-in, held on the historic grounds of Trinity College, founded in 1592, also proved exceptionally high. Crowds packed the college's grounds to witness Taylor, often referred to as the "queen of Irish sport." Despite the college only allowing women to study from 1975, Taylor, who has been a trailblazer for women in sports, was the main attraction.
Those in attendance at Trinity College were present not just for the weigh-in, but to be part of what is being described as a historic moment in Taylor's illustrious career. The venue itself, with its renowned Old Library housing the Book of Kells, provided a distinguished backdrop for this significant event in the final fight week of Taylor's career.