
Josh Taylor announces boxing retirement & explains decision
Taylor thanked fans and his family in a lengthy statement, along with coaches and other key figures in boxing who have helped him have a successful career.
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The former undisputed light-welterweight champion wrote alongside it: "End of an era. I have lived my dream for the last 10 years & conquered Mount Everest.
"Thank you to every single one of you for the support through what has been this mad rollercoaster of a journey.
"Boxing is all I've ever known but now let's see what life has to offer on the other side of the ropes."
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BBC News
a day ago
- BBC News
'My world caved in' - Taylor on forced retirement
For any athlete who has reached the top of their sport, saying goodbye can be the hardest part. When that decision is taken out of your own hands, it becomes harder still."It's just been like my world's caved in," Josh Taylor tells BBC Scotland two weeks on from the devastating diagnosis that brought his boxing career to an immediate halt.A routine eye exam following defeat by Ekow Essuman in May showed extensive damage. An initial scan found a tear in the retinal tissue behind Taylor's left eye, but a closer examination found there were actually six. The specialist laid it out plainly - continue boxing and you risk going Tartan Tornado enjoyed a career few fighters could dream of - a Commonwealth Games gold medallist, an Olympian and, in 2021, becoming the first - and so far only - male fighter from the UK to win four belts in a single division to become undisputed world consecutive defeats in his past three bouts, Taylor did not want his storied career to finish on a losing note and had hoped for "one or two more fights", but the potential loss of his vision in one eye put paid to thoughts of a fairytale ending. The sudden transition from active fighter to former boxer has been tough to process."I'm feeling quite down in the dumps, to be honest," said the 34-year-old. "I've had two weeks to absorb it, but the more I think about it, the more upset I get."I know I've sort of completed the game in a sense in terms of becoming undisputed champion, but not going out on my own terms, it was kind of like a kick in the teeth."It was kind of like falling straight off the edge of a cliff. I'm not going to risk losing my sight for the sake of just one more fight. But it was like the end of my world." 'Heart-warming response softened the blow' Elite athletes often speak of the difficulty of transitioning out of the sport that has defined them for most of their life. The structure of a training schedule, the lofty goals to aim for and everything that drives them on a daily basis, it all disappears speaks incredibly honestly, and with visible emotion, about "the slump" he is experiencing since he was told his boxing career was has provided solace in this tough period is the mountain of messages, from fans and fellow fighters alike, paying tribute to the Scot for his magnificent achievements since he publicly announced his retirement on Monday."The messages of support that I've had has helped me, helped lift me cause it's made me feel a little bit better, made me feel appreciated, made me feel that I've done good in the sport," he says."I've had a lot of great messages from some high profile names and just my friends and people I haven't heard from in a long time."For the last few years I've had nothing but hate with every single post that I've written, there's always a section of the comments that there's just hate and stuff like that. I think this is the first one in the last two or three years that I've not had any."So the response has been quite heart-warming and made me appreciate what I achieved, kind of softened the blow a little bit and it's cheered me up a little bit. So I'd like to say thank you to everybody that's taken time to message me." 'Someone that wasn't afraid to be great' Taylor admits his diagnosis perhaps "saved me from myself" - a fighter will always want to the future now holds for the boy from Prestonpans who conquered the world is open to some punditry work and with his direct, unvarnished honesty, he would seem tailor made for will go back to where it all started, Lochend Boxing Club, to help out his friend and mentor Terry McCormack, inspiring the next generation. "Maybe we'll find the next Josh Taylor", he day he might even open his own gym in East Lothian. He has a lot left to give to the sport, even if his own time under the lights has now come to an how would Josh Taylor like to be remembered?"I don't know, I've never thought about it," he says."They're going to remember me any way they want, but I would like to hope they thought I was an all-action kind of fighter and wasn't afraid to take a fight."Someone that come up and took on all challenges and wasn't afraid to try to be great."Just a fighter."


Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Daily Mirror
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce finally go 'Instagram official' with 13 sweet snaps
After months of dating, Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce have finally gone 'Instagram official' with their relationship, sharing a series of loved up snaps online After months of fan excitement and keeping a relatively low profile about his love life, Travis Kelce has finally taken things to the next level and made his relationship with pop star Taylor Swift official on Instagram. The Kansas City Chiefs' tight end embraced the modern tradition of confirming a relationship via social media, offering fans a glimpse into their blossoming romance. On Thursday, Travis shared a series of photos documenting their summer adventures together in what marked a huge milestone in their relationship journey so far. Travis, who boasts 6 million followers on Instagram, posted a collection of snaps from their recent holiday. The images showcased various moments of their relationship, from boat trips to dining at upscale restaurants. One photo captured the couple enjoying a snowy landscape, while another showed them sharing a moment on an ice rink. In one particularly sweet image, Taylor is seen tenderly holding Travis's face as they pose with friends. Captioning the post, Travis wrote: "Had some adventures this offseason, kept it 100.", reports the Express. As soon as the post was live, fans and fellow celebrities flooded the comments section, expressing their delight at this significant step in the couple's relationship. Former NBA player Chandler Parsons chimed in with: "the hard post !" acknowledging that this was the first time Taylor had featured on Travis' Instagram feed. Betty Crocker, the baking behemoth, also couldn't resist chiming in, suggesting the post might just "break the internet." Among the collection of images, one specific photo caught the sharp eyes of fans, as it unveiled that Kelce's phone lock-screen is a snapshot of the smitten pair. In a discreet tribute to TayTay, the post included a total of 13 images, which happens to be Taylor's lucky number. The 35-year-old pop superstar and American footballer Travis have been an item since September 2023 and it seems they are as hungry for each other as always. The couple have supported each other on the road - with Travis, 35, tailing Taylor on her epic Eras World Tour which finally climaxed at the end of last year, and she attending games he played for his team, the Kansas City Chiefs. The couple have been reasonably happy to talk about their romance - with Travis occasionally talking about his girlfriend on his podcast, New Heights, which he co-hosts with his brother Jason Kelce, 37. And Taylor has declared her love to Travis while on stage and collecting awards. However up until now, the couple have never officially confirmed their romance on social media, making Travis' photo carousel all the more poignant.


Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Daily Mail
Taylor Swift fans in meltdown after spotting Travis Kelce's lock screen in offseason photo dump
Travis Kelce has left Taylor Swift fans in awe after revealing his heartwarming lock screen in a photo dump of their 'offseason adventures' together. Almost two years into their relationship, Kelce finally went Instagram official with Swift on Thursday after posting his girlfriend on the social-media platform for the first time. The celebrity power couple look smitten in the series of pictures, which capture them both alone and with two different groups of friends in a variety of settings. And in the third photo of his Instagram dump, where they are seen out for dinner together, eagle-eyed Swifties quickly spotted the lock screen image on Kelce's phone on the table. The picture appears to be a loved-up snap of Travis and Taylor, which sent her die-hard legion of fans into meltdown. 'The locked screen pic of Taylor and Trav....I just fainted,' one Swiftie wrote in the comments section. The Kansas City Chiefs legend finally went Instagram official with his girlfriend on Thursday Another posted: 'why is nobody talking about how she's his lock screen!!!' 'Not me zooming in on the phone screensaver,' said a third. 'The Lock Screen on slide 3 is perfection,' a fourth commented. While one even went as far as to speculate: 'is it an engagement photo???' Kelce and Swift have dominated headlines since they went public with their relationship in September 2023, when the pop megastar turned up to one of his Kansas City Chiefs games for the first time. Unlike last year, when they were riding the wave of the frenzy over their romance, they enjoyed a much more low-key offseason this time around after only making a handful of public appearances in recent months. And now Kelce, was back on the practice field on Tuesday as the Chiefs began their preparations for the new NFL season, is set to spend three weeks away from his lover. From Tuesday until August 13, the team will be based at Missouri Western State University in St Joseph - around an hour north Arrowhead Stadium. There, Kelce and the other 89 players on the roster will stay in dorms on campus for the duration of camp. That means three weeks without seeing their partners and families. For Travis, that means almost a month without seeing Taylor.