Tearful Taylor – “I should be beating those girls”
Katie Taylor admits that she should be beating the likes of Mira Potkonen, and while she felt she may have edged their fight today, she was reluctant to cry foul or make excuses.
The Bray lightweight, the defending Olympic champ, lost out in her opening bout in Rio to the strong Finn – whom she had beaten five times previously.
A tearful Taylor told RTÉ immediately afterwards that “it’s very disappointing, it’s been a very very tough year.”
“I suffered a lot of losses this year and it’s very very hard to take.”
“The Olympics is a dream for me and I came in here prepared very well and I gave it my best shot and it just didn’t happen.”
“Sometimes the plans you have in your heart aren’t the same as God’s plans.”
“I just want to thank everyone for all their support and prayers, I’m so humbled by that.”
On the fight itself, Taylor felt she won, but steered clear of calling it a robbery and instead focused on her own performance. The 30 year old Wicklow fighter noted that “I thought she probably won the second round but I thought the other three rounds went my way but it was a very close fight and when you’re in it it is very hard to call the fight, I’ll have to watch it back.”
“It’s just very disappointing, I should be beating those girls.”
“I don’t know what to say about it really, those girls just shouldn’t be beating me I don’t think.”
Taylor dismissed the suggestion that the long wait to start her campaign following a bye into the Last Eight effected her performance, reasoning that “It was a long wait over here, but I can’t blame that, I prepared very well in the lead up to this fight.”
“I felt very well coming into this fight and I felt very confident.”
“I think every one of the Irish boxers are coming into this tournament well prepared.”
“It’s hard to keep that level of consistency going as well.”
“Every fight is a very close fight, and judging is subjective, it’s hard to call them a lot of the time.”
Katie Taylor admits it has been a very difficult year as she reflects on losing Olympic crown https://t.co/mrA7PmWJhl
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) August 15, 2016
