WATCH: Katie Taylor calls out to congratulate O’Rourke and Broadhurst as Irish gold girls bask in glory

KATIE Taylor has congratulated Ireland’s two newest world champions, Amy Broadhurst and Lisa O’Rourke.

On a phone call from her Connecticut base to Istanbul last night, the undefeated pro world champion spoke to the two gold medalists who are following in her footsteps.

The Bray fighter won five consecutive world titles during her glittering amateur career, culminating in her Olympic gold medal success in London.

The call was arranged by Ireland head coach Zaur Antia, who has had close ties with Taylor since she decided to turn professional after the Rio Olympics.

Taylor and Amy Broadhurst first met ten years ago when the then Olympic gold medalist made a surprise visit to Broadhurst’s secondary school in Dundalk to congratulate the teenager on winning a European schoolgirls title.

Ahead of Taylor’s world championship fight against Amanda Serrano at Madison Square Garden last month, Broadhurst traveled to Connecticut to train with her.

“I think I need days to understand what I did today,” Amy said after winning the light welterweight gold medal in Istanbul.

“I have dreamed of this moment since I was a child and have been working to win a major championship for almost 20 years. I had to be patient and not make any mistakes against the Algerian counterattack.

“I felt in the second lap that my strategy worked and I knew I could do it. I don’t remember what my coach Zaur Antia told me during the second break, but I gave it my all in the third.”

O’Rourke, who celebrated her 20th birthday last week, said she found it hard to put into words what winning the light middleweight gold medal meant to her.

“I won the EUBC U22 European Boxing Championship in Croatia this March, but this is something unexpected for me. My plan is to always be on the top of the podium, but I’m overjoyed after this success. I had to keep my distance in this final and followed orders from Zaur and John (Conlan).”

Antia praised the champion’s technical, tactical and sporting achievements.

“The technical, tactical and athletic performances of Amy and Lisa in their bouts today showed their dedication and commitment to preparing for this tournament. All Team Ireland boxers performed well in Istanbul and are better, more experienced boxers for having fought here. Amy and Lisa’s wins are great achievements and they should enjoy every moment of their wins.”

IABA President Dominic O’Rourke described it as a historic day for Irish boxing.

“A day to be remembered for generations to come. Amy and Lisa have done with themselves, their families and their clubs; St Bronagh’s and Olympic Galway are proud to showcase the depth and quality of Irish boxing on the world stage,” he said.

Fergal Carruth, IABA’s Executive Chairman, said the magnitude of their achievement was almost immeasurable.

He pointed out that Team Ireland have won 29 medals in major competitions in recent months, with a record-breaking medal tally at the European Under-22 Championships and winning the bronze award for best team at the European Youth Championships.

“These achievements would not have been possible without our dedicated and extremely talented club-level volunteers, our competition organizers and the expertise of our high-performance team,” said Carruth.

The two gold medalists and the rest of the squad are due to fly to Dublin Airport tomorrow afternoon.