Although women have participated in boxing for almost as long as the sport has existed, female fights have been effectively outlawed for most of boxing's history until recently, with athletic commissioners refusing to sanction or issue licenses to women boxers, and most nations officially banning the sport. Reports of women entering the ring go back to the 18th century.
The Lord Lonsdale Challenge Belt, commonly known as the Lonsdale Belt, is the oldest championship belt in British professional boxing. The 5th Earl of Lonsdale introduced the prize on behalf of the National Sporting Club (NSC), intending it to be awarded to British boxing champions. Arthur Frederick Bettinson, manager of the NSC, introduced terms and conditions regarding the holding of the belt, which ensured its lasting prestige. Freddie Welsh earned the first Lonsdale Belt in 1909 after winning the NSC British Lightweight title. Heavyweight Henry Cooper was the first and only boxer to win three Lonsdale Belts. In 1929 the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC) assumed responsibility for awarding the belt, which continues to be bestowed on British champions.
Sport in Wales plays a prominent role in Welsh culture. Like the other countries of the United Kingdom, Wales enjoys independent representation in major world sporting events such as the FIFA World Cup and in the Rugby World Cup, but competes as part of Great Britain in some other competitions, including the Olympics.
Jazmin Roxy "Jazz" Carlin is a former British competitive swimmer, who previously represented Wales and the Great Britain swimming team. She competed primarily in endurance freestyle events, and was based at the University of Bath. She won gold for Wales at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, double gold for Great Britain in the 400 metres and 800 metres freestyle at both the 2014 European Championships and the 2015 European Championships before winning two silver medals for Great Britain in the same events behind Katie Ledecky at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Natasha Jonas is a British professional boxer is a two weight world champion who has held the unified WBC, and WBO female light-middleweight titles since 2022. As an amateur, she won a bronze medal in the light-welterweight division at the 2011 European Championships; bronze in the lightweight division at the 2012 AIBA World Championships; and silver in the light-welterweight division at the 2014 European Championships.
Nicola Virginia Adams is a British former professional boxer who competed from 2017 to 2019. She retired with an undefeated record and held the World Boxing Organization (WBO) female flyweight title in 2019. As an amateur, she became the first female boxer to become an Olympic champion after winning gold at London 2012, and the first double Olympic champion following a second gold medal at Rio 2016, both in the flyweight division. As of 27 May 2016 she was the reigning Olympic, World and European Games champion at flyweight, and won the entire set of amateur championships available to her – Olympic, Commonwealth and European Games' titles, and the World, European and European Union championships.
Freddie William Evans is a British professional boxer fighting in the 69 kg welterweight category. As an amateur, he won gold at the 2007 World Cadet Championships in Hungary and won gold for Wales at the 2011 European Amateur Boxing Championships in Ankara. He was the first Welsh boxer to achieve the feat in 86 years.
Savannah Rose Marshall is a British professional boxer and professional mixed martial artist. She has held world championships in two weight classes: the undisputed and Ring magazine female super-middleweight title since 2023; and the World Boxing Organization (WBO) female middleweight title from 2020 to 2022. As an amateur, she became the first British female world champion after securing gold at the 2012 World Championships.
Elinor Jane Barker is a Welsh road and track racing cyclist, who currently rides for UCI Women's Team Uno-X Mobility. Representing Great Britain in international competitions, Barker is an Olympic champion, a three-time World champion and seven-time European champion in the team pursuit, as well as a three-time World champion in the points and scratch races, a World champion in the madison, a two-time European madison champion and one time European elimination race champion. Representing Wales, Barker was also the points race champion at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
Wales competed at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland. Prior to the games the Commonwealth Games Council for Wales set itself a target of 27 medals, surpassing the 2010 total of 20 medals won in Delhi. After the withdrawal of World champion competitors Helen Jenkins, Non Stanford and Becky James, Chef de Mission Brian Davies conceded that the initial target was optimistic, but the target was actually attained by 30 July, the sixth day of the competition. Wales finished 13th in the overall medal table, but joint 8th, with Nigeria, in terms of the total medals won.
Mandy Marie Brigitte Bujold is a Canadian former amateur boxer. She won gold medals in the women's flyweight category at the 2011 and 2015 Pan American Games and won a bronze medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. She competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics and competed at the delayed 2020 Summer Olympics following an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Joe Cordina is a Welsh-Maltese professional boxer. He is a two-time super-featherweight world champion, having held the International Boxing Federation (IBF) title from April 2023 until May 2024 and previously in 2022.
Kaye Scott is an Australian boxer who as an amateur won multiple World Championship and Commonwealth Games medals across three weight divisions. She currently holds the professional Australasian and Australian female middleweight titles.
Mica Moore is a British women's sprinter and bobsleigher. She competed for Wales in the 4 × 100 metres relay at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, and competed in the 2-women bobsleigh event at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
Anna Hursey is a Welsh table tennis player. She is thought to be the youngest person to represent Wales at senior level in any sport, having been aged just 10 when she competed for Wales in a European Championship qualification match against Kosovo in 2017.
Sandy Ryan is an English professional boxer who is a former WBO female welterweight title holder.
Rosie Eccles is a Welsh amateur boxer who won a gold medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games as well as a host of other medals at international competitions representing both Wales and Great Britain.
Jessica McCaskill is an American former professional boxer. She is a former world champion in two weight classes, having held the undisputed, IBO and Ring female welterweight titles; the WBC female super-lightweight title and the WBA female super-lightweight title. She also challenged for the WBA lightweight title.
Tammara Thibeault is a Canadian boxer competing in the Middleweight category. Thibeault won the 2022 World Championship in Istanbul after earlier winning the middleweight bronze in 2019. She is the reigning Commonwealth Games champion when she won gold in Birmingham in 2022, improving on her bronze medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. Thibeault is also the current Pan American Games champion when she won gold at the 2023 Pan Am Games, again improving on her bronze from the 2019 Pan American Games.
Kirstie Bavington is an English professional boxer. She is a two-time European female welterweight champion and fought in the first-ever professional women's British title contest.
