Taylor stops Kasshenova to edge closer to London dream

Dwayne Leavy

KATIE TAYLOR is through to the quarter-finals of the AIBA Boxing World Championships in China and one step closer to realising her Olympic dream.

The Bray boxer was in complete control of her bout today stopping her opponent, Saida Kasshenova of Kazakhstan, with 19 seconds remaining in the final round.

Taylor dominated the fight from the opening bell and won the first round 8-3. She extended her lead to 13-6 in the second round and entered the fourth and final round leading 20-8 on the judges’ scorecard.

Taylor will now face Mihaela Lacatus of Romania in the last eight tomorrow where victory will almost certainly mean she qualifies for the London Games.

Lacatus is a former world champion but retired from boxing in 2007 before reversing that decision earlier this year in an effort to qualify for the Olympic Games.

Only three European boxers can qualify for the games in Taylor’s 60kg class.

Elsewhere there was disappointment for |19-year-old Ceire Smith (pictured), from Cavan, who was stopped in the third round of her fight against Poland’s Karolina Michalczuk.

Smith was in trouble from the early stages of the fight and was behind 12-1 after the first round. The onslaught continued for Smith who was 23-7 down despite attacking bravely when the referee stopped the fight.