Tears, blood & triumph - Taylor's iconic career in pictures

Tears, blood & triumph - Taylor's iconic career in picturesImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Katie Taylor won Olympic gold in 2012Katie Taylor's career was soaked in blood, tears and triumph.The Irishwoman has stepped away from the sport aged 40 after 27 fights and 26 wins after a memorable night at Dublin's Croke Park.Making her amateur debut in 2001, Taylor won every medal and title she could have and more importantly had a lasting effect on women's boxing and women as athletes.BBC Sport takes a look back on some of the best pictures from her iconic career.Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Taylor helped legalise women boxing in Ireland, competing in the first sanctioned female fight in 2001 aged 15Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Taylor won five world championships as an amateur including in 2012 when she also won Olympic gold in LondonImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Her father Peter, who had been her long-time coach, was there to celebrate with herImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Taylor is one of 15 Irish athletes to win gold at an Olympics in any sport and was the only Irish gold medallist in 2012Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, She returned in 2016 but suffered a shock exit in the quarter-finalsImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Taylor quickly moved on, convincing Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn to sign her as a professional. Taylor was the first female fighter Hearn signedImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, She made a winning debut at Wembley Arena in November 2016, which was packed with Irish fansImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, She took just 11 months to claim her first world title - the WBA lightweight belt Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, In her bid to become Ireland's first four-belt world champion at Madison Square Garden in 2019, she was almost beaten by Delfine PersoonImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, The wounds of war were obvious on Taylor's face after the battle with PersoonImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Taylor returned to MSG in 2022, this time to face Amanda Serrano. Years of talks finally bore fruit as the rivals finally stepped in the ring together at a sold-out MSG. It was the first time two women had headlined a boxing fight at the iconic New York venueImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, A 10-round classic could have been very different for Taylor, had she not stayed on her feet and edged a split decision points winImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Taylor and her mother Bridget, a constant figure by her side, shared a moment backstage at MSGImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, After nine years without a fight in Ireland, Taylor finally got her chance in front of her home fans in November 2024Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, A hugely emotional night turned into disaster as England's Chantelle Cameron produced a masterclass to strip Taylor of her undefeated recordImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, But from devastation...Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, ...to joy six months laterImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Taylor outpointed Cameron in rematch in Dublin to become a two-weight undisputed championImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Taylor has had countless famous visitors to her dressing room down the yearsImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Taylor went back on the road to fight Serrano again in 2024, this time in front of 60,000 people in Texas and live on NetflixImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, The rivals produced another classic decided on the smallest of margins as Taylor prevailed Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Despite beating Serrano twice, Taylor agreed to a trilogy at MSG...Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, ...and closed out the trilogy with a clean sweepImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Taylor was on top of the world as undisputed light-welterweight champion and looked ready to sail off into retirement...Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, ...but there was one itch left to scratch - Dublin's iconic Croke ParkImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Taylor soaked up every moment of her final fight week and made Clodagh Keating's dreams come true when she invited the 10-year-old to join her for some boxing drills at the public workoutImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Taylor made her final ringwalk to over 80,000 at Croke ParkImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Bridget Taylor's smile beamed from ear-to-ear as she added another WBC belt to the collection following Katie Taylor's unanimous decision win over Flora Pili Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, That's all she wrote. Taylor laid her gloves down in the centre of the Croke Park ring to bring the curtain down on her illustrious careerPublished20 December 2025More boxing from the BBC