Women's boxing

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Female boxer)

Boxing
Anne Sophie Da Costa and Tina Rupprecht boxing, 2017
Also known asPugilism
FocusPunching, Striking
Olympic sportYes, as of the 2012 Olympics

Although women have participated in boxing for almost as long as the sport has existed, female fights have been effectively outlawed for most of boxing's history until recently, with athletic commissioners refusing to sanction or issue licenses to women boxers, and most nations officially banning the sport.[1][2][3] Reports of women entering the ring go back to the 18th century.[4]

Historical overview[edit]

Bennett sisters boxing, c.1910–1915
Louise Adler, female lightweight world boxing champion of the 1920s, training for her title defense

One of the earliest mentions of women's boxing is in the travelogue of a German man who visited London in 1710. While taking in a men's boxing match, he met a woman in the audience who claimed to have previously boxed another woman in the same venue.[5]

One of the earliest known women's boxing matches to have been advertised in print was in London between Elizabeth Wilkinson and Hannah Hyfield in 1722. Billing herself as the "European Championess", Wilkinson and her husband would also fight other mixed couples as a pair, with Wilkinson fighting the other woman, and her husband fighting the other man. In those days, the rules of boxing allowed kicking, gouging and other methods of attack not part of today's arsenal.[6]

Women's boxing first appeared in the Olympic Games as a demonstration sport in 1904, in St. Louis.[7]

During the 1920s, Professor Andrew Newton formed a Women's Boxing Club in London.[8] However women's boxing was hugely controversial. In early 1926, Shoreditch borough council banned an arranged exhibition match between boxers Annie Newton and Madge Baker, a student of Digger Stanley.[9][10][11] An attempt to hold the match in nearby Hackney instead was defeated by a campaign led by the Mayor of Hackney, who wrote, "I regard this proposed exhibition of women boxers as a gratification of the sensual ideals of a crowd of vulgar men."[11] The Home Secretary Sir William Joynson-Hicks was among those opposing the match, claiming "the Legislature never imagined that such a disgraceful exhibition would have been staged in this country."[9] The story was reported across the country[12] and even internationally.[13]

In 1988 the Swedish Amateur Boxing Association sanctioned events for women.[14]

In 1997 the British Amateur Boxing Association sanctioned its first boxing competition for women. The first event was meant to be between two thirteen-year-olds, but one of the boxers dropped out because of hostile media attention. A month later, an event was held between two sixteen-year-olds.[14]

Although women fought professionally in many countries, in the United Kingdom the B.B.B.C. refused to issue licenses to women until they issued one to Jane Couch in 1998.[15] By the end of the century, however, they had issued five such licenses. The first sanctioned professional bout between women in the U.K. was in November 1998 at Streatham in London, between Jane Couch and Simona Lukic.[16][17]

Renata Cristina Dos Santos Ferreira punches Adriana Salles, São Paulo, Brazil (2006)

The International Boxing Association (amateur) accepted new rules for women's boxing at the end of the 20th century and approved the first European Cup for Women in 1999 and the first World Championship for women in 2001.[18] In October 2001 the first women's world amateur boxing championships,[19] called the 2001 Women's World Amateur Boxing Championships, were held in Scranton, in the United States.[20]

Lucia Rijker and Jane Couch boxing, 2003

Women's boxing was not featured at the 2008 Olympics; however, on 14 August 2009, it was announced that the International Olympic Committee's Executive Board (EB) had approved the inclusion of women's boxing for the Games in London in the 2012 Olympics,[21][22][23] contrary to the expectations of some observers. Around these (2009) hearings, in conjunction with AIBA (International Boxing Association), the International Olympic Committee agreed to include three additional women's weight classes to the 2012 London Olympic Games. A new "gender-appropriate" women's boxing uniform was being created at the time, which would have required women (under AIBA rules) to wear skirts during competition. The issue was widely ignored by the public until amateur boxer and London student Elizabeth Plank brought the issue to light. She created a petition at Change.com to end the gender-based mandatory uniforms.[24] It was eventually decided (before the 2012 Olympics) to give women boxers the option of wearing shorts or a skirt.[25]

Women were allowed to competitively box for the first time at the Olympics during the 2012 Summer Olympics, producing the world's first 12 female Olympic medalist boxers.[26][27][28][29] Nicola Adams of Great Britain won the world's first Olympic women's boxing gold medal.[30]

On 14 September 2014, after defeating Croatian Ivana Habazin, Cecilia Brækhus became the first Norwegian and the first woman to hold all major world championship belts in her weight division (welterweight) in boxing history.[31]

In 2015 the World Boxing Federation unified various women's titles to have one title holder.[32]

Women's boxing in pop culture[edit]

The first ever boxing movie, The Corbett-Fitzsimmons Fight, was released in 1897 and was filmed using Thomas Edison's Kinetoscope technology. Ever since then, boxing movies have dominated American cinemas.

Until the 1990s, movies about female boxers were sparse and marketed as objectifying softcore x-rated films in order to cater to the mainstream male gaze. Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, movies such as Blonde Fist, Shadow Boxers, and Girlfight were released and, according to scholar Camilla Fojas, changed boxing culture.[33]

Women's boxing has also been the topic of some book series, e.g. Leah Hager Cohen's Without Apology: Girls, Women, and the Desire to Fight.[34]

Argentina[edit]

In Argentina, women's boxing has experienced a notable rise in popularity, due in part to the presence of boxers such as Alejandra Oliveras, Marcela Acuna, Yesica Bopp and Erica Farias.[35]

Australia[edit]

While not being urged to avoid competition, women had few opportunities to compete in sport in Australia until the 1880s. After that date, new sporting facilities were being built around the country and many new sport clubs were created.[36] Boxing classes were being offered to women in Australia by 1892, at locations such as the Brisbane Gymnasium on Turbot Street, close to the city's railway station.[37] While classes may have been offered for women, serious training was not permitted for women by the 1900s and women were banned from pursuing the sport in a competitive way. Women were also barred from attending boxing matches.[38] New South Wales banned women's boxing from 1986 to 2009.[39] Women's boxing was resumed in NSW with an exhibition fight between Kaye Scott and Ramona Stephenson in October 2009.[40] Women's boxing was legalized in Queensland in 2000.[41]

In 2002, Desi Kontos of South Australia became the first Australian woman to represent the country at the boxing world championships.[42]

Naomi Fischer-Rasmussen was the first female boxer to represent Australia at the Olympics when she competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics.[43][44]

Cuba[edit]

In 2022 women became allowed to participate officially in the sport of boxing in Cuba, for the first time since they were banned from doing so during the Revolution of Fidel Castro in 1959.[45][46]

Gaza Strip[edit]

In 2019 the first female boxing club in the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian Center of Boxing for Women, opened.[47][48]

India[edit]

Mary Kom of India is a five-time World Amateur Boxing champion. She is the only woman boxer to have won a medal in each one of the six world championships.[49]

Three Indian female boxers, namely, Pinki Jangra, Mary Kom, and Kavita Chahal were placed in the world's top three in AIBA world rankings (1 March 2014) in their respective categories.[50]

Ireland[edit]

In 2001, Katie Taylor[51] won the first officially sanctioned female boxing match in Ireland, at the National Stadium, defeating Alanna Audley from Belfast.[52][53] Before 2001 it was illegal for females to box professionally.[54][55]

Mexico[edit]

In 1998 Laura Serrano was supposed to fight in Mexico City, but the match was canceled due to a 1947 ban against women boxing in Mexico City.[56][57][58] The ban was eventually ended.[58][59] In 2015 Serrano became the first female Mexican boxer inducted into the International Women's Boxing Hall of Fame.[60]

In 2005 Mexican female boxer Jackie Nava became the first woman to win a female world title fight sanctioned by the WBC.[61][62][57][63][64]

The Netherlands[edit]

In 2019, Lucia Rijker became one of the first three women boxers (and the first Dutch woman boxer) elected to the International Boxing Hall of Fame; 2019 was the first year that women were on the ballot.[65][66]

Saudi Arabia[edit]

In 2022, Somalian boxer Ramla Ali defeated Dominican boxer Crystal Garcia Nova in the first professional women's boxing match held in Saudi Arabia.[67][68]

Somalia[edit]

Ramla Ali was the first boxer to win an international gold medal while representing Somalia.[69] Later, in 2021, she competed in the women's featherweight event at the 2020 Summer Olympics. Although she lost her first fight, she became the first boxer ever to represent Somalia on the Olympic stage.[70] In 2022, she defeated Dominican boxer Crystal Garcia Nova in the first professional women's boxing match held in Saudi Arabia.[67][68]

Sweden[edit]

In 1988 the Swedish Amateur Boxing Association sanctioned events for women.[14]

United Kingdom[edit]

One of the earliest mentions of women's boxing is in the travelogue of a German man who visited London in 1710. While taking in a men's boxing match, he met a woman in the audience who claimed to have previously boxed another woman in the same venue.[5]

One of the earliest known fights to have been advertised in print was in London between Elizabeth Wilkinson and Hannah Hyfield in 1722. Billing herself as the "European Championess", Wilkinson and her husband would also fight other mixed couples as a pair, with Wilkinson fighting the other woman and her husband, the other man. In those days, the rules of boxing allowed kicking, gouging and other methods of attack not part of today's arsenal.[6][71]

During the 1920s, Professor Andrew Newton formed a Women's Boxing Club in London.[8] However women's boxing was hugely controversial. In early 1926, Shoreditch borough council banned an arranged exhibition match between boxers Annie Newton and Madge Baker, a student of Digger Stanley.[9][10][11] An attempt to hold the match in nearby Hackney instead was defeated by a campaign led by the Mayor of Hackney, who wrote, "I regard this proposed exhibition of women boxers as a gratification of the sensual ideals of a crowd of vulgar men."[11] The Home Secretary Sir William Joynson-Hicks was among those opposing the match, claiming "the Legislature never imagined that such a disgraceful exhibition would have been staged in this country."[9] The story was reported across the country[12] and even internationally.[13]

In 1997 the British Amateur Boxing Association sanctioned its first boxing competition for women. The first event was meant to be between two thirteen-year-olds, but one of the boxers dropped out because of hostile media attention. A month later, an event was held between two sixteen-year-olds.[14]

Jane Couch became the first licensed female boxer in the United Kingdom in 1998.[72] The British Boxing Board of Control initially refused to grant Couch a professional licence on the sole ground that she was a woman, and argued that PMS made women too unstable to box.[15][73] Claiming sexual discrimination and supported by the Equal Opportunities Commission, Couch managed to have this decision overturned by a tribunal in March 1998.[74][75] However, some criticism followed as the British Medical Association called this result "a demented extension of equal opportunities".[76] The first sanctioned professional boxing match between women in the U.K. was in November 1998 at Streatham in London, between Couch and Simona Lukic. Couch won.[16][17]

In 2001, Nicola Adams became the first woman boxer ever to represent England, which she did in a fight against an Irish boxer.[77] In 2007 she became the first English female boxer to win a medal in a major boxing tournament, taking silver in the European Championships.[78] In 2008 she won a silver medal that was Britain's first women's world championship medal in women's boxing.[79] In 2012, representing Great Britain, she won the world's first Olympic women's boxing gold medal.[30] This win also made her the first openly LGBT person to win an Olympic boxing gold medal.[80]

In 2019 English boxer Barbara Buttrick became one of the first three women boxers (and the first English woman boxer) elected to the International Boxing Hall of Fame; 2019 was the first year that women were on the ballot.[65][66]

In 2022 two female boxers headlined at a major venue in the United Kingdom for the first time, which occurred at the O2 Arena. That fight was a title unification bout between Claressa Shields and Savannah Marshall. Shields won via unanimous decision with two judges scoring the fight 97–93 and one scoring it 96–94, all in favor of Shields to become the undisputed middleweight world champion.[81][82][83][84] As well, the fight headlined the first all-female boxing card in the United Kingdom.[85] Later in the year, Chantelle Cameron defeated Jessica McCaskill in a match held in Abu Dhabi, making Cameron the undisputed world light-welterweight champion and the United Kingdom's first undisputed female boxing world champion.[86][87]

United States[edit]

In 1876, the first women's boxing match was held in the United States. In this match Nell Saunders defeated Rose Harland. Her prize was a silver butter dish.[88]

Women's boxing first appeared in the Olympic Games as a demonstration sport in 1904, in St. Louis.[7]

In 1954, Barbara Buttrick was part of the first boxing match between two women on American national television.[89][90]

In 1975, Caroline Svendsen became the first woman to receive a boxing license in the United States when she was granted one in Nevada.[90]

Also in 1975, Jackie Tonawanda sued the New York State Athletic Commission (NYSAC) for denying her a boxing license because of her gender.[91] This resulted in the case Garrett v. New York State Athletic Commission (1975) at the New York Supreme Court (Tonawanda was also known as Jacqueline Garrett) which was decided in her favor.[92] However, this did not overturn the law in New York against women boxing.[93] But Cathy Davis sued the New York State Athletic Commission in 1977 because she was denied a boxing license because she was a woman, and the case was decided in her favor later that year, with the judge invalidating New York State rule number 205.15, which stated, “No woman may be licensed as a boxer or second or licensed to compete in any wrestling exhibition with men.”[94][95] In his opinion the judge cited the precedent set by Garrett v. New York State Athletic Commission (1975), which “found the regulation invalid under the equal protection clauses of the State and Federal Constitutions”. The NYSAC filed an appeal of the ruling, but later dropped it.[92][94] In August 1978 Cathy Davis became the first woman to be on the cover of The Ring.[96][97] On September 19, 1978, Davis received the NYSAC's first boxing license given to a female boxer.[98]

In 1976, Pat Pineda became the first female boxer to be licensed in California.[99]

In 1979, a lawsuit made California change its boxing regulations, which had limited women boxers to no more than four rounds.[90][100]

During the 1980s, women's boxing briefly resurfaced in public notice in California due to the twin sisters Dora and Cora Webber. They were world champions. Other women boxers went on hunger strikes to be noticed.[101]

But the boom of women's boxing came during the 1990s, coinciding with the boom in professional women sports leagues such as the WNBA and WUSA, and with boxers such as Stephanie Jaramillo, Delia 'Chikita' Gonzalez, Christy Martin, Laila Ali, Jackie Frazier-Lyde, Bonnie Canino and Sumya Anani, all world champions, jumping into the scene.[102][103][104][105][106]

On 16 April 1992, after eight years in court in Massachusetts, Gail Grandchamp won her battle to become a boxer, as a Massachusetts state Superior Court judge ruled it was illegal to deny someone a chance to box based on gender.[107] During her battle to win the right to box as an amateur, she passed the age of 36, the maximum age for amateur fighters. Even though she knew it would not help her as an amateur, Grandchamp continued her efforts, and eventually did box professionally for a time.[108][109][110][111]

Dallas Malloy was denied an application by USA Boxing due to being female. She sued and U.S. District Judge Barbara Rothstein allowed her to box by granting a preliminary injunction.[112] In October 1993, Malloy defeated Heather Poyner in the United States' first sanctioned amateur boxing match between two female boxers.[113][114] USA Boxing lifted its ban on women's boxing later in 1993.[112][115]

Also in 1993, Don King, the world-famous boxing promoter, signed American boxer Christy Martin in October,[116][117] making Martin the first female boxer to sign with King.[118][119]

In 1995, the New York Golden Gloves allowed women boxers to compete for the first time.[90][120]

On March 16, 1996, a boxing match took place that is often called the fight that "put women's boxing on the map",[121][116] or "the bout that made women's boxing".[122] It was held in Nevada between American Christy Martin and Irishwoman Deirdre Gogarty. The fight was won by Martin, in a six rounds unanimous decision, and led to her featuring as the first female boxer on the cover of Sports Illustrated on April 15, 1996;[123] the headline read, "The Lady Is a Champ".[124]

In October 2001 the first women's world amateur boxing championships,[19] called the 2001 Women's World Amateur Boxing Championships, were held in Scranton, in the United States.[20]

On April 2, 2005 Becky Zerlentes was participating in the Colorado State Boxing Senior Female Championships at the Denver Coliseum in Denver, Colorado. She was knocked out in the third round by her opponent, Heather Schmitz, fell unconscious, and died without regaining consciousness. This made Zerlentes the first woman known to have died of injuries sustained during a sanctioned boxing match in the United States. According to the Denver County coroner the cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head.[125][126]

In 2014 the International Women's Boxing Hall of Fame, located in America, held its first induction.[127][128]

In 2016, Christy Martin became the first female boxer inducted into the Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame.[129][130][131]

American[132] major boxing broadcasting network HBO broadcast its first women's bout, between Norway's Cecilia Brækhus and America's Kali Reis, on May 5, 2018, which Brækhus won.[133][134]

In 2019 American boxer Christy Martin became one of the first three women boxers (and the first American woman boxer) elected to the International Boxing Hall of Fame; 2019 was the first year that women were on the ballot.[65][66]

The first women's boxing match to headline Madison Square Garden, described as the 'biggest women's fight of all time',[135] was held on April 30, 2022, between Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano, with Taylor's undisputed lightweight titles on the line.[136][137] Taylor defeated Serrano by split decision.[138]

Professional women's boxing has declined in popularity in the United States and struggles to get viewership and sponsorship. Many women boxers have to fight in Mexico or Europe in order to make a good living.[139][140][103][141] The sport has largely been supplanted by Women's MMA.[103][142][143]

Differences between men and women's boxing rules[edit]

Amateur boxing bouts are four rounds of two minutes for women and three rounds of three minutes for men, each with a one-minute interval between rounds.[citation needed]

As stated by the International Boxing Association Technical Rules and Competition Rules:

– head guards are necessary for female boxers of any age;

– a breast guard is advised for female fighters in addition to a pubic (crotch) guard;

– pregnant sportswomen are not allowed to engage in combat.

Female Boxing in the Global South[edit]

Female boxing has been on the rise in the Global South. As boxing is an individual sport rather than a team exercise it was believed that the lessons of self-reliance and discipline would be seen by men as threatening to their way of life and their ability to control women.

As time has gone on the inclusion of female boxing has increased in many places in the Global South. The first regional competition that included women was in the European Games in 2001, but in 2007 the South-East Asia Games also included female boxing. Other regional competitions in Asia and South America also moved to include female boxing in 2010 and 2011, in response to the International Olympic Committee stating that women's boxing would be included in the 2012 Olympics.[144] Even as late as 2019 the only competitions to exclude female boxing are the Mediterranean Games and the Pan Arab Games.[144]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "The Martial Chronicles: Fighting Like a Girl". Bloody Elbow. November 2015. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
  2. ^ Jason Rodrigues. "Women boxers to make Olympic history in city that once shunned them | Sport". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  3. ^ Woodward, Kath (28 July 2010). "BBC Sport – Women in boxing over the years". BBC News. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  4. ^ Brown, Sarah (2014). "Against the Ropes". Bitch Magazine. Retrieved 25 November 2014.
  5. ^ a b Smith 2014, p. 2
  6. ^ a b Jennings, L. A. (2014). She's a Knockout!: A History of Women in Fighting Sports. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 33–40. ISBN 9781442236448.
  7. ^ a b Conway, Laura. "USOEC welcomes first female boxers".
  8. ^ a b "Formation of the contemporary women's boxing". Retrieved 1 August 2016.
  9. ^ a b c d "WOMEN's BOXING BOUTS ABANDONED Promoter Yields to Public Opinion". Hackney and Kingsland Gazette. 1 February 1926.
  10. ^ a b Norris, H.C. (4 April 1926). "She Wants to FIGHT Jack Dempsey!". Zanesville Times Signal. Zanesville. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
  11. ^ a b c d "WOMEN BOXERS Proposed Bouts With Men". Hackney and Kingsland Gazette. 29 January 1926.
  12. ^ a b "WOMEN BOXERS". Western Daily Press. 30 January 1926.
  13. ^ a b Brown, Norman (4 February 1926). "Sports Done Brown". Sarasota Herald Tribune. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
  14. ^ a b c d A Gambling Guide. Nicolae Sfetcu. 3 May 2014.
  15. ^ a b "Round one for women's boxing". BBC News. 24 November 1998. Retrieved 5 December 2008.
  16. ^ a b "Sport | Women's boxing makes instant impact". BBC News. 25 November 1998. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  17. ^ a b "Boxing: First Night Jane Couch – Women face an even bigger fight". The Independent. 29 November 1998. Retrieved 18 May 2017.
  18. ^ "Women's Boxing". Insidethegames.biz. 25 September 2016. Retrieved 1 October 2016.
  19. ^ a b Dashper, Katherine; Fletcher, Thomas; Mccullough, Nicola (25 July 2014). Sports Events, Society and Culture. Routledge. p. 90. ISBN 9781134053278 – via Google Books.
  20. ^ a b "Women's boxing is in safe hands with the new generation after fighting its way back from a sordid past". the Independent. 27 March 2017. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  21. ^ Dixon, Rachel. "The rise of women boxers | Life and style". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
  22. ^ "Women's Boxing Olympic place a victory 'for justice and equality'". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  23. ^ "Olympic News – Official Source of Olympic News". Olympic.org. 28 August 2014. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  24. ^ Paradis, Elise (24 May 2012). "Boxers, Briefs or Bras? Bodies, Gender and Change in the Boxing Gym". Body & Society. 18 (2): 82–109. doi:10.1177/1357034x12440829. ISSN 1357-034X. S2CID 146627642.
  25. ^ "Boxers not forced to wear skirts". BBC Sport.
  26. ^ "Women's boxing gains Olympic spot". BBC News. 13 August 2009. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  27. ^ Park, Alice (9 August 2012). "Olympic Women's Boxing Has Its First Champions, and a Generation of Girls Have New Role Models | TIME.com". Olympics.time.com. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  28. ^ "Women Finally Get Their Chance to Be Contenders in Olympic Boxing". The New York Times. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  29. ^ "Nicola Adams becomes first ever winner of an Olympic women's boxing tournament". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  30. ^ a b "Olympics boxing: Great Britain's Nicola Adams wins historic gold". BBC Sport. 9 August 2012. Retrieved 9 August 2012.
  31. ^ Brækhus first woman to unify division Archived 2015-11-23 at the Wayback Machine The Foreigner
  32. ^ "WBF | World Boxing Federation". Worldboxingfederation.net. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
  33. ^ Fojas, Camilla (2009). "Sports of Spectatorship: Boxing Women of Color in Girlfight and Beyond". Cinema Journal. 49 (1): 103–104. doi:10.1353/cj.0.0154. Retrieved 1 October 2023.
  34. ^ Fojas, Camilla (2009). "Sports of Spectatorship: Boxing Women of Color in Girlfight and Beyond". Cinema Journal. 49 (1): 108. doi:10.1353/cj.0.0154. Retrieved 1 October 2023.
  35. ^ Hernandez, Vladimir (2 July 2011). "Why Argentina is producing women boxing champions". BBC News. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  36. ^ Howell, Max; Howell, Reet; Brown, David W. (1989). The Sporting Image, A pictorial history of Queenslanders at play. Brisbane: University of Queensland Press. pg. 84. ISBN 0-7022-2206-2.
  37. ^ Howell, Max; Howell, Reet; Brown, David W. (1989). The Sporting Image, A pictorial history of Queenslanders at play. Brisbane: University of Queensland Press. pg. 27. ISBN 0-7022-2206-2.
  38. ^ Howell, Max; Howell, Reet; Brown, David W. (1989). The Sporting Image, A pictorial history of Queenslanders at play. Brisbane: University of Queensland Press. pg. 87. ISBN 0-7022-2206-2.
  39. ^ "NSW opens ring for women's boxing". ABC News. 19 December 2008. Retrieved 13 May 2011.
  40. ^ "NSW girls boxing premiere". Cornerman Magazine. Retrieved 19 March 2017.
  41. ^ "Women boxers fight uphill battle". UQ News Online – The University of Queensland. 3 March 2005. Retrieved 13 January 2012.
  42. ^ "Women boxers shape up for equal rights". Herald Sun. 15 July 2008. Retrieved 13 January 2012.
  43. ^ "Some days are diamonds for Meares". The Australian. 26 May 2012. Retrieved 17 June 2012.
  44. ^ Foreman, Glen (9 June 2012). "Fischer-Rasmussen has had a tough fight to get to London". Perth Now. Retrieved 17 June 2012.
  45. ^ "Boxing powerhouse Cuba will now let women compete". WFMZ.com.
  46. ^ "Cuba: Women boxers allowed to compete after rule change". 3 January 2023 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  47. ^ "Inside Gaza's only boxing club for girls". 21 July 2021 – via www.abc.net.au.
  48. ^ "Feature: Challenging gender stereotyping, first female boxing club opens in Gaza-Xinhua". english.news.cn.
  49. ^ "Magnificent Mary". I See India. 13 August 2011. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  50. ^ Marar, Nandakumar (6 March 2014). "Five Indian boxers in AIBA top three". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  51. ^ "Katie Taylor's Journey From Ireland to the Best Women's Fighter Alive – Sports Illustrated". 27 April 2022. Archived from the original on 27 April 2022.
  52. ^ "Maeve Sheehan: Joy abounds as prayers at Katie's church are answered". Independent.ie. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  53. ^ "Pride without prejudice". Irish Times. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
  54. ^ "Welterweight Deirdre packs a knockout punch for female boxers". independent.
  55. ^ "Woman boxer wins legal fight". The Irish Times.
  56. ^ "SPORTS: Women Boxers in Mexico Winning Major Battle in the Ring – Inter Press Service". www.ipsnews.net. 15 April 1998. Retrieved 18 May 2017.
  57. ^ a b "MEXICO: OFFICIALS BAN 2 WOMEN'S BOXING MATCHES | AP Archive". www.aparchive.com. Retrieved 18 May 2017.
  58. ^ a b "La Jornada: El boxeo me sale debiendo, pero vivo para él: Serrano" [La Jornada: Boxing pays me off, but I live for it: Serrano] (in Spanish). 6 May 2022. Archived from the original on 6 May 2022.
  59. ^ "Women's Boxing: Laura Serrano". www.womenboxing.com. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
  60. ^ "2015 IWBHF Inductee: Laura Serrano". www.iwbhf.com. Retrieved 18 May 2017.
  61. ^ C.V, DEMOS, Desarrollo de Medios, S. A. de (3 July 2009). "La Jornada: El boxeo femenil encara a diario a sus más duros rivales: el machismo y la discriminación" [La Jornada: Women's boxing faces its toughest rivals every day: machismo and discrimination]. www.jornada.com.mx (in Mexican Spanish). Retrieved 27 September 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  62. ^ Avila, David A. (28 June 2016). "BOXING: West remains optimistic despite lack of willing fighters". Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  63. ^ Mullen, Claire. "She grew up throwing punches at school. Now, she's shaping Tijuana's women's boxing scene". www.thelily.com. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
  64. ^ Moreno H. (2015) Women Boxers and Nationalism in Mexico. In: L’Hoeste H.F., Irwin R.M., Poblete J. (eds) Sports and Nationalism in Latin/o America. New Directions in Latino American Cultures. Palgrave Macmillan, New York
  65. ^ a b c Schilken, Chuck (4 December 2019). "Christy Martin and Bernard Hopkins headline Boxing Hall of Fame class". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  66. ^ a b c Tumin, Remy (18 August 2022). "Famous, but Not Free". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  67. ^ a b Fatima, Sakina (21 August 2022). "Saudi: Ramla Ali wins 1st professional women's boxing match in 1 min". The Siasat Daily.
  68. ^ a b "Ramla Ali sees off García Nova in Saudi Arabia's first ever female boxing bout". The Guardian. 20 August 2022.
  69. ^ "Featherweight Boxing Champion Ramla Ali". Elle. 12 November 2019. Retrieved 29 December 2021.
  70. ^ "Podcast: The Somali who kept boxing secret from her family". Olympics. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
  71. ^ Smith 2014, pp. 1–4
  72. ^ "Nicola Adams to fight 3-minute rounds in next bout". 4 May 2022. Archived from the original on 4 May 2022.
  73. ^ Bentham, John (February 1998). "12 and 13 February 1998 – Tribunal 1, 100 London Road, Croydon, UK". #4. Punkcast. Retrieved 12 February 2010.
  74. ^ "March: Jane Couch". BBC News. 22 December 1998. Retrieved 1 December 2008.
  75. ^ "Couch Interview". 19 September 1999. Archived from the original on 22 June 2020. Retrieved 4 December 2008.
  76. ^ "Just give her a ring". The Guardian. London. 7 January 2001. Retrieved 5 December 2008.
  77. ^ "Nicola Adams: World Championship Silver Medallist" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 March 2012.
  78. ^ Guardian Staff (31 March 2011). "One hundred hopefuls for 2012: Nicola Adams". The Guardian.
  79. ^ "Adams' excitement hitting fever pitch". Bradford Telegraph and Argus.
  80. ^ Maclure, Abbey (17 October 2020). "Everything you need to know as Nicola Adams takes to the Strictly dancefloor". Yorkshire Evening Post.
  81. ^ "Claressa Shields beats Savannah Marshall by unanimous decision in undisputed middleweight title fight". Sky Sports. Retrieved 16 October 2022.
  82. ^ "Sensational Shields beats Marshall in epic". BBC Sport. Retrieved 16 October 2022.
  83. ^ Jesús Milano (5 July 2022). "Claressa Shields and Savannah Marshall will face on Sept. 10". wbaboxing.com.
  84. ^ Danny Segura (20 September 2022). "Claressa Shields' boxing return rescheduled for Oct. 15 after postponement due to passing of Queen Elizabeth II". MMAjunkie.com.
  85. ^ "Savannah Marshall loses grudge match against Claressa Shields in fierce battle". ITV News. 16 October 2022.
  86. ^ "Cameron becomes UK's first undisputed female champion" – via www.bbc.com.
  87. ^ "Northampton star Cameron makes history as she becomes undisputed world champion". www.northamptonchron.co.uk. 6 November 2022.
  88. ^ "History of Women in Sports Timeline - Part 1- to 1899". 27 May 2014. Archived from the original on 27 May 2014.
  89. ^ Staff, B. N. "Barbara Buttrick - the original trailblazer - Boxing News". www.boxingnewsonline.net.
  90. ^ a b c d "A History of Women's Boxing | WNYC | New York Public Radio, Podcasts, Live Streaming Radio, News". WNYC.
  91. ^ "Jackie Tonawanda". www.ibhof.com.
  92. ^ a b "Garrett v. New York State Athletic Commission, 82 Misc. 2d 524 (1975)". Read Caselaw. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
  93. ^ "Lady Ali: How Jackie Tonawanda Changed Women's Boxing". Mental Floss. 2 October 2017.
  94. ^ a b Smith 2014, pp. 168–169
  95. ^ "People in Sports". The New York Times. 22 January 1975.
  96. ^ Algieri, Sal (August 1978). "Cat Davis, Women Boxer, Could be Start of New Breed". The Ring. pp. 6–7 (42).
  97. ^ Written by: L.A. Jennings. "The Women Boxers Who Fought for Their Right to Be Pro | FIGHTLAND". Fightland.vice.com. Retrieved 14 June 2016.
  98. ^ Smith 2014, p. 169
  99. ^ Women Boxers: The New Warriors. Arte Publico Press. 2006. ISBN 9781611923360.
  100. ^ "Women's Boxing: Shirley "Zebra Girl" Tucker". www.womenboxing.com.
  101. ^ Behrens, Leigh (19 April 1987). "Boxer Hungry For Recognition". The Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
  102. ^ "ESPN.com: BOXING – Women's boxing becoming a real joke". A.espncdn.com. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
  103. ^ a b c Smith 2014, p. 263
  104. ^ Brown, Sarah (13 May 2014). "Against the Ropes". Bitchmedia.org. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  105. ^ "The Real Knockouts of Women's Boxing". The Atlantic. 16 January 2015. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
  106. ^ "A Ring of One's Own". The New Yorker. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
  107. ^ "ESPN.com: BOXING – Historical Events in Women's Boxing". Assets.espn.go.com. Retrieved 15 October 2015.
  108. ^ "Grandchamp, Local Boxing Legend, Ready to Film Life Story / iBerkshires.com – The Berkshires online guide to events, news and Berkshire County community information". Iberkshires.com. 17 July 1987. Retrieved 15 October 2015.
  109. ^ "A Fighter's Passion for Her Olympic Dream". Globenewswire.com. 15 June 2007. Retrieved 15 October 2015.
  110. ^ Rosenwald, Julius (17 July 1987). "Boxer with a mission – Berkshire Eagle Online". Berkshireeagle.com. Retrieved 15 October 2015.
  111. ^ "The Grand Champ of Women's Boxing: A Massachusetts fighter opens the door to first-ever women's Olympic boxing". SCN. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  112. ^ a b "WOMEN TO MAKE HISTORY IN FIRST SANCTIONED BOUT". Deseret News. 13 October 1993.
  113. ^ "Female boxer throws down her gloves". Tampa Bay Times.
  114. ^ "Female Fighters Pound Their Way Into History : Boxing: Dallas Malloy, 16, who fought to open the sport to women, wins nation's first sanctioned amateur bout by unanimous decision over Heather Poyner". Los Angeles Times. 31 October 1993.
  115. ^ "History of Amateur Boxing". 24 April 2012. Archived from the original on 24 April 2012. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
  116. ^ a b Smith 2014, pp. 194–209.
  117. ^ Lindsay, Jessica (5 October 2021). "The rise of women's self-defence products and the sad reality of rape culture".
  118. ^ Barnes, Dana R., ed. (2004). "Christy Martin". Notable Sports Figures. Gale. Archived from the original on 10 September 2022. Retrieved 7 September 2022 – via Gale OneFile.
  119. ^ Conner, Caira (22 June 2022). "Boxing legend Christy Martin: 'My husband told me for 20 years he would kill me'". TheGuardian.com. Archived from the original on 2 August 2022. Retrieved 2 August 2022.
  120. ^ "How a Japanese-American physics teacher helped pioneer women's boxing". www.yahoo.com.
  121. ^ Mannix, Chris (27 April 2022). "Garden Party: Taylor-Serrano Will Make History in Boxing's Most Hallowed Venue". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
  122. ^ Clerkin, Malachy (3 March 2016). "Deirdre Gogarty – a trailblazer who fought her corner". Irish Times. Archived from the original on 28 July 2022. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  123. ^ Tumin, Remy (17 August 2022). "Famous, But Not Free". New York Times. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  124. ^ "Christy Martin, Boxing Sports Illustrated Cover by Sports Illustrated". Archived from the original on 3 August 2022. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  125. ^ "Punch kills woman boxer". The Guardian. 6 April 2005. Archived from the original on 3 February 2022.
  126. ^ "Female boxer's death a shattering blow to the sport". Baltimore Sun. 17 April 2005. Archived from the original on 22 June 2021.
  127. ^ "Corning native inducted into the Women's Boxing Hall of Fame in Las Vegas over the weekend". Fingerlakes1.com. 16 August 2021.
  128. ^ "International Women's Boxing Hall of Fame inducts historic first class". Bad Left Hook. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
  129. ^ "Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame to induct 11, including 1st woman". thenewstribune. Archived from the original on 9 March 2016.
  130. ^ "First female voted into Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame". Boxingjunkie.
  131. ^ Diaz, George. "Christy Martin finally stands alone as boxing Hall of Famer". orlandosentinel.com.
  132. ^ "Sky could sign exclusive HBO deal". The Guardian. 10 May 2004.
  133. ^ "Cecilia Braekhus outpoints game Kali Reis, remains undisputed welterweight champ". 6 May 2018.
  134. ^ Mahmood, Zahid (2 May 2018). "HBO's first televised female boxing match breaking 'the last barrier'". CNN.
  135. ^ "Katie Taylor vs. Amanda Serrano is the biggest women's fight of all time, worthy of a place in Madison Square Garden history | DAZN News US". DAZN. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  136. ^ Stumberg, Patrick L. (27 January 2022). "Katie Taylor vs Amanda Serrano official for April 30th at Madison Square Garden". Bad Left Hook. Retrieved 9 February 2022.
  137. ^ "Boxing News: Taylor-Serrano clash set for April 30 at MSG » February 9, 2022". fightnews.com. 27 January 2022. Retrieved 9 February 2022.
  138. ^ "Katie Taylor retains undisputed lightweight title after Amanda Serrano win – as it happened". Guardian. 1 May 2022. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  139. ^ Raskin, Alex (6 July 2016). "Women's Boxing Fights for Exposure". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
  140. ^ Paul Sullivan (17 August 1987). "These Women Go Toe-to-toe For Extra Dough – tribunedigital-chicagotribune". Articles.chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 19 June 2016.
  141. ^ "Female boxers' fight for survival in the US". Al Jazeera English. 10 November 2014. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  142. ^ "Women's boxing hopes to gain traction from Holly Holm's UFC victory over Ronda Rousey". LA Times. 8 February 2016. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
  143. ^ "Examining the Growth and Popularity of Women's Mixed Martial Arts". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 30 December 2014.
  144. ^ a b Schneider, Paige (17 November 2021). "Sparring with patriarchy: the rise of female boxers in the Global South". Journal of Gender Studies. 30 (8): 887–900. doi:10.1080/09589236.2020.1826294. ISSN 0958-9236.

Bibliography[edit]

External links[edit]