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Anita McSorley & Dan Grennan

Katie Taylor’s personal life from father fallout to relationship questions

Katie Taylor is set to defend her undisputed lightweight crown on the line against undefeated Argentine ace Karen Carabajal on Saturday.

It is her first fight since her split-decision win over Amanda Serrano at Madison Square Garden in New York. The Bray Bomber is hoping to extend her unbeaten record to 22 wins and hold on to her WBC, WBA, IBF and WBO titles.

The 36-year-old has spoken about retirement and even admitted she "can't go on forever". However, a homecoming bout in Croke Park is still on her to do list.

Read more: Katie Taylor still wants huge homecoming fight in Croke Park

Here’s what we know about the 35-year-old’s family life:

Early life

Katie Taylor was born in July 1986 and grew up in Bray, Co Wicklow with three older siblings - Sarah, Lee and Peter - and her mum and dad, Bridget and Pete Taylor. Her school years were spent at St Kilian's Community School in Bray, after which, she went on to study at UCD after her Leaving Certificate.

Katie Taylor shares a moment with her mother Bridget in the changing room after the fight (©INPHO/Gary Carr)

From a young age, Katie’s interest in sport was strong, taking part in soccer at school, as well as playing Gaelic and Camogie with her local GAA clubs. Katie first began boxing when she was 11-years-old, and competed in several competitions across Ireland and Europe with her father Pete as her coach.

Family life and father fallout

The star boxer is very close with her family and usually has her mother Bridget and sister Sarah alongside her at fights. Her dad Pete trained her up until 2015 - helping her achieve a gold medal at the 2012 Olympics in London - when the two's professional partnership ceased due to “personal reasons”.

Young Katie with dad Pete (Instagram/ Pete Taylor)

She previously told the Irish Times: "Yeah. It was a tough time for the whole family. It was tough to go into those competitions. I went through a lot of emotions in those times. I don’t know if that’s the reason I lost. But I was going through a hard time in those months."

Lavish home

Katie has been living and training in Vernon, a rural American town around 150km outside Boston, for nearly five years.

She bought a home that sits atop a hill in a small neighbourhood surrounded by woods.

She previously said she loved “the quietness” of the location.

She said: "I just love the quietness, really. Especially when you're in the thick of training and I don't need any loud neighbours or anything like that. For training camp, that type of house is definitely perfect."

Relationship Questions

The question Katie hates being asked most is the one about relationships. She told The Athletic: "Probably the question about relationships. That’s another question people always ask. I guess people are just interested in my personal life.

Bray native Katie Taylor will fight against Amanda Serrano (NBC)

"I get it all the time. It’s a bit annoying at times but I’m just polite and get on with it. I don’t think male boxers get asked it, though." Katie told The Irish Mirror in 2019 that she is so busy with boxing that she doesn't have time for a relationship.

She said: “I’m not [seeing anyone] at the moment, I really genuinely haven’t got the time. I’m just out in America training hard at the moment but who knows what could happen in the future.”

Pro career

In 2005, when Katie was 19, she became the first Irish woman to win a gold medal at the Senior European Championships after competing against Eva Wahlstrom, Lucie Bertaud, and Gulsum Tatar.

During her amateur boxing career, Taylor won five consecutive gold medals at the Women's World Championships, gold six times at the European Championships, as well as winning five times at the European Union Championships.

In 2012, Taylor qualified for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, marking the first year where female boxers could compete at the games.

She reached the finals against Sofya Ochigava, and won her first Olympic Gold Medal after beating the Russian boxer - becoming the first ever Olympic female lightweight champion.

Taylor then moved into the professional ranks in 2016, where she currently holds a record of 21-0. Since then, the 35-year-old has racked up an incredible list of honours.

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