Ireland’s Katie Taylor added Olympic Games gold to her four World Championships titles Thursday – but she was made to work hard for her 10-8 win over Russia’s Sofya Ochigava amid an extraordinary atmosphere at ExCeL. Katie Taylor of Ireland celebrates winning her bout against Sofya Ochigava of Russia during the women’s Light Weight (60kg) Boxing final bout. With the decibel levels surely hittingnew heights, Taylor set about business in her usual way in the Light Weight final, pushing forward and flinging right hooks at Ochigava, a tough, two-time former world silver medallist. But it soon became clear Taylor was in for a test as the Russian matched Taylor’s strength inside and clinched up close to prevent her opponent from getting off her usual array of big shots.
Adams claims historic gold
Nicola Adams sealed her golden moment with an Ali shuffle as she overwhelmed China’s double world champion Ren Cancan 16-7 to be crowned the first-ever Olympic women’s Boxing champion at ExCeL. Gold medalist Nicola Adams of Great Britain celebrates on the podium during the medal ceremony after the Women’s Fly (51kg) Boxing final bout of the day. Adams dropped Ren in the second round on her way to a comprehensive Fly Weight victory against an opponent who had beaten her in each of the previous two World Championships finals.
Powell out with groin strain
Former world record-holder Asafa Powell will miss Jamaica’s Olympic 4x100m relay with a groin strain that has ruled him out for the rest of the season. The 29-year-old Powell sustained the injury during Sunday’s 100m final, in which he limped in eighth and last position.
Risztov wins swim marathon thriller
Hungary’s Eva Risztov won a gripping Olympic women’s swimming marathon by just 0.4 seconds at London’s Hyde Park on Thursday. The 26-year-old led for much of the 10km race in the Serpentine lake but she finished only marginally ahead of America’s Haley Anderson with a winning time of 1hr 57min 38.2sec. Italy’s Martina Grimaldi took bronze and home favourite Keri-Anne Payne was fourth, with the top four separated by just four seconds.
