Two Wicklow Sports Stars Honoured At Sportswoman Awards

Boxer Katie Taylor and rugby player Lucy Mulhall received monthly awards, while Katie McCabe was crowned Sportswoman of the Year.

Undisputed world champion Katie Taylor, who has won the Sportswoman of the Year award a record 5 times, picked up her latest monthly award in November.

She did so after producing an winning performance in the ring in her re-match with Chantelle Cameron at Dublin’s 3Arena.

Back in May, Taylor had suffered her first professional defeat at the hands of the English boxer. But in a fight for the ages, her victory in front of a crowd of 9,000, Taylor added super lightweight belts to the lightweight collection she already owned, making her the first undisputed Irish world champion at two weight divisions.

 After a rough start to the year for Irish women’s rugby, the Sevens squad gave the sport a much-needed boost when they sealed qualification for next summer’s Olympic Games by finishing fifth in the seven-tournament World Series, which featured 17 nations.

Captain Lucy Mulhall was in inspired form in the final tournament in Toulouse, during which she won her 50th cap, Ireland opening  with a 27-7 win over France.

Ultimately, it was their 10-5 defeat of Fiji that clinched qualification, Mulhall finishing as Ireland's highest points scorer through the Series and fourth in the overall standings.

Having played for the Sevens for nine years, and after being part of the team that came close to qualifying for Rio and Tokyo, the Wicklow woman finally had her reward and the Sportswoman of the Month award for May.

Unfortunately, both were unable to attend the Awards ceremony - Katie Taylor was abroad and Lucy Mulhall was getting married.

Her trophy was accepted on her behalf by Eimear Flannery from the IRFU.