Ireland's youngest female pro boxer Katelynn Phelan scores sensational victory

Ireland’s youngest professional female boxer, 20-year old Katelynn Phelan from Kildare, has scored a sensational victory in Germany.

In her first title fight, she secured the World Boxing Council youth welterweight title as well the World Boxing Federation and the women’s International Boxing Association World welterweight belts.

Fighting in her opponent’s home gym in the Munich suburb of Donauworth, she defied conventional wisdom by scoring a stoppage win against 19-year old Jessica Schadko.

The German-Ukrainian had won her previous eight fights with consummate ease and was being tipped for greatness.

But Phelan had other ideas, and such was her dominance that the hometown hero had enough after five rounds of non-stop aggression from the Irish fighter. She failed to get off her stool for the sixth round and the referee waved the fight over.

Phelan’s first four fights had all been of four rounds' duration, but it made no difference to the Kildare boxer, who is coached by Niall Barrett and her father Paddy. Barrett was one of the winners of RTE’s ‘Ultimate Hell Week’ series earlier this year.

The former St Brigid’s BC star won nine Irish titles, a European junior bronze, and a World youth bronze during her amateur career.

This win is a significant breakthrough for Phelan. She now has an opportunity to secure a spot on a high-profile show at a time when women’s professional boxing is on the cusp of a significant breakthrough.