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Andreas Hale
“The First Lady” has called it a career in style.
Former undisputed welterweight champion Cecilia Braekhus (39-2-1, 9 KOs) defeated Ema Kozin (24-2-1, 12 KOs) by unanimous decision Saturday for the WBC and WBO junior middleweight titles at the Nova Spektrum in her home country of Norway. Judges scored the fight 97-93, 96-94 and 98-92 for Braekhus, who became a champion in a second weight class.
Braekhus, 44, announced ahead of the fight that her bout with Kozin would be her farewell from the sport, but it certainly looked like she had more to give if she continued her career.
Kozin started fast, but the seasoned Braekhus quickly found her rhythm and went to work to the body and head of her Slovenian opponent. Kozin, whose only other loss was to Claressa Shields, had difficulty reading Braekhus and endured some combinations as a crowd of 3,000 fans urged on their fighter.
“I want to thank the boxing community all over the world, my friends in England, L.A., everyone. I’m so happy,” Braekhus said after the fight.
Braekhus debuted in 2007 and is often cited by women in boxing as a source of inspiration. She was instrumental in overturning Norway’s 33-year ban on pro boxing in 2014 and remained undefeated for 12 years, while holding the WBC and WBA welterweight titles for a Guinness World Record of 11 years and 154 days between March 14, 2009, and Aug. 15, 2020.