Historic victory for Blackpool boxer Alice Pumphrey

Pumphrey, who trains out of the Batley-based Purge Boxing Academy, became England Boxing’s first female to win gold in the European school, juniors and youth sections.

Having been drawn against Ireland’s Carlagh Peake in the opening stage, Pumphrey had her opponent on the back foot from the start.

She landed shots to the head and body, forcing a standing eight count, before a second followed and the fight was stopped after 90 seconds of the first round.

Next up was Italian Martina Vassallo in the quarters where, after dropping the first round, Pumphrey stayed composed and got into her rhythm against a good opponent.

The second round was much closer but she had a mountain to climb going into the third, where Pumphrey put Vassallo under pressure and scored well with phases of attack.

Vassallo persistently held throughout the last round, leading to two warnings and a 4-1 win for Pumphrey.

Maria Georgopoulou, Greece’s former world silver medalist, awaited in the semi-final but Pumphrey’s relentless aggression gave her victory by a unanimous decision.

That saw her into the final, where she met Turkish fighter Emine Kilinc.

As soon as the first bell sounded, Pumphrey had her opponent in trouble and forced a first standing eight count after only 50 seconds.

She stepped it up a gear and, 15 seconds later, the referee gave her a second count before letting the bout continue.

However, after another barrage, the bout was stopped and gave Pumphrey her place in the record books.