Taylor: Amateur boxing is purer

Katie Taylor admits she is not closer to deciding which direction to her career despite describing amateur boxing as a purer sport.

Ireland’s golden girl from the London Olympics has been offered a number of lucrative deals to turn professional but there is every chance she will retain her amateur status after expressing a desire to defend her title at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro.

Her father Pete, who also acts as her coach, is in talks with the Sports Council but the Bray native insists she is no closer to making a decision.

“There are  lot of things about going professional that have to be gone into – you have to make sure that you get the right promoter and that you get a good signing-on contract,” Taylor is quoted as saying in the Irish Daily Star.

“You have to make sure, too, that the right fights are out there for you. In amateur boxing you just enter a competition or a championships and you have to beat the best, whoever comes up; there is no picking and choosing of your opponents. Amateur boxing is a purer sport.

“Professional boxing is different, it’s a business, and I love the idea that in amateur boxing you really have to be the best and you have to beat the best.

“I haven’t really set a date for my decision, my dad is in talks with the Sports Council.”

Taylor is keen to get back into the ring but despite being the Olympic champion she admits she has plenty of things to work on.

“If I do stay amateur, I’d like to fight again before Christmas, just to start the season off,” she added. “Hopefully I’ll get a few more wins under my belt heading into the European Championships next year.

“I’ve a lot of work to do. I make a lot of mistakes, so there are many things I have to improve on next year. That’s what I’m working on at the moment.”