Aoife O’Rourke has defeated Busra Isildar of Turkey to win gold in the 75kg division at the World Boxing Championships in Liverpool.
The Roscommon native was up against a tough opponent, who had impressed throughout the competition, however, O’Rourke proved too strong in the decider, enjoying a comprehensive victory to take a 5:0 unanimous decision, winning all three rounds.
O’Rourke has shown incredible fitness and strength throughout her route to the final and it did not desert her in the decider as she maintained he aggressive approach leading with the strong left jab.
Isildar had enjoyed great success in previous bouts throwing off the back foot, and while she again looked capable of landing, O’Rourke’s work-rate caused her problems throughout the opening two rounds.
O’Rourke was awarded the first and second stanzas 4:1, which put the Castlerea woman in a commanding position going into the final round.
But if anything, the Ireland boxer lifted the intensity for the last three minutes against a clearly tiring opponent and by the time the bell rang the decision looked clear.
And sure enough, all five judges handed the final round to O’Rourke, ensuring a 5:0 overall victory, the scorecards reading 28-29, 27-30, 27-30, 27-30, 28-29, as her arm was raised in victory.
Aoife O’Rourke stands atop the podium to receive her gold medal, as Amhrán na bhFiann is played at the World Boxing Championships in Liverpool. pic.twitter.com/E39Wopg3TJ
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) September 14, 2025
“I’m absolutely delighted. It’s a great honour to be putting my name alongside the other girls and men and women who have achieved this for Ireland as well,” she said to RTÉ Sport’s Siobhan Madigan.
Her success means there are two world champions in the O’Rourke family with sister Lisa having won the light middleweight in Istanbul three years ago.
On the secrets behind their success, Aoife O’Rourke remained coy, quipping, “I can’t be telling you that. I’ll be keeping that under my nose.”
But on her own individual mindset and the support team that made the gold medal possible, she added: “There are a lot of ingredients for a recipe for success and that comes with talent, hard work, coming to training, discipline, all that.
“But everyone outside of that who feeds into it and gives their portion – coaches, staff, physios, you name it, they’re all there behind the scenes and they’re the ones that see the process along the way and are there with you every step of the way.
“Everyone wants to be part of the outcome, but it’s who’s with you along the way that gets you to this point. So I’ve all them to thank.”