World Championships: Ireland's Amy Broadhurst and Lisa O'Rourke win World Championships golds
- Published
Lisa O'Rourke won a gold medal at just 20 years of age
Ireland's Amy Broadhurst and Lisa O'Rourke have won gold medals at the Women's World Boxing Championships in Istanbul.
Broadhurst beat Imane Khelif of Algeria in the light-welterweight division after being awarded a unanimous decision by the five judges.
O'Rourke defeated Helena Panguane of Mozambique in the light-middleweight category on a split 4-1 decision.
Katie Taylor and Kellie Harrington are Ireland's only previous gold winners.
Taylor has gone on to remain undefeated in her professional career so far, while Harrington collected an Olympic gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics, which were delayed from 2020 until 2021.
Former European junior and youth champion Broadhurst had to battle in her semi-final victory over Turkey's Sema Caliskan but was always in control in Thursday's final.
She had twice previously reached the quarter-finals and will fight for Northern Ireland in the Commonwealth Games this summer.
The county Louth native sparred with Katie Taylor in the build-up to the lightweight world champion's sensation win over Amanda Serrano.
On Thursday in Istanbul Broadhurst displayed supreme control in an utterly convincing display in which she outworked Khelif and dictated the pace of the three-round bout from start to finish.
Light-middleweight O'Rourke claimed gold with a 4-1 split decision
O'Rourke, 20, from Roscommon, also ran out a comfortable winner in her final, although she went into the final round level on two cards.
The Irish fighter appeared comfortable on the backfoot throughout the fight and won the first two rounds 3-2 on the judges cards, but a 10-8 score in Panguane's favour from one judge ensured the contest remained firmly in the balance going into the final round.
It was in the final three minutes that O'Rourke moved onto the front foot and although Panguane remained dangerous with smart counter shots, the tide was moving in favour of the Roscommon native who claimed a deserved win.
Along with both fighters claiming the winning cash prize of $100,000, the successes saw Ireland shoot to the top of the medal standings with two golds in the tournament.