Before Deirdre Gogarty became Ireland's first female world boxing champion in 1997, she had already inspired a young Irish girl. Katie Taylor was learning the art of pugilism at a time - as Gogarty had found - opportunities for women in boxing were almost non-existent in Ireland. Taylor wrote to her hero in 1996, saying she did not "see boxing for girls taking off here in the near future", adding "maybe one day they'll even let us box in the Olympics". As it turned out, Taylor was integral in getting women's boxing into the Olympics - winning gold in 2012. She is set to retire on Saturday as one of Ireland's greatest sportspeople. As Taylor - a two-weight undisputed world champion - prepares to walk out at a sold-out Croke Park in Dublin for her farewell fight against Flora Pili on Saturday, Gogarty writes back to the 40-year-old...
Deirdre Gogarty (left) beat Bonnie Canino in January 1997 to win the WIBF featherweight world **** le [Getty Images]
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Dear Katie,
As I prepare to come home to Ireland to watch you fight at Croke Park, I keep thinking about just how far we have come.

#ireland