Kellie Harrington says she is embracing every moment of her final Olympic Games, after making history at Paris 2024.
The defending champion has become the first Irish woman to win medals at two different Olympic Games, cruising through to the semi-finals of the 60kg division in Paris, which will guarantee her a bronze at least.
The 34-year-old produced an emphatic display at Arena Paris Nord to defeat Colombia's Angie Valdes Pana by unanimous decision, securing a third medal for Ireland this week.
"I don't know yet, because I haven't had time to really think about it," the Tokyo 2021 champion told RTÉ Sport about the prospect of being a double Olympic medallist.
'These are the times I need to be enjoying because the boots will be getting hung up soon' - Kellie Harrington speaks to @JoeStack_Ky after reaching the Olympic semi-final #RTESport #Paris2024 #boxing
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And Harrington admitted that the prospect of ending her career in Paris this month will drive her on when she steps into the ring in the semi-finals, where she will face either Beatriz Ferreira, who she beat in the final in Tokyo, or Chelsey Heijnen of the Netherlands.
"I felt relaxed going in there. I listened to what the coaches were telling me and it was working, I felt the fight myself and I enjoyed it in there.
"These are the times that need to be enjoyed because the boots will be getting hung up soon.
"I'll do a couple of more national championships, but I think I’ll be finished [internationally]. I don’t know. At 60 kilos, definitely!
"Let me tell you something here and now, every person here in these games, in the Olympic Games, is a brilliant opponent. There is no easy fight here, there's no easy contests here, they’re all hard. Nobody gets to the Olympic Games without being on the absolute top of their game. Any fight is a hard fight, a tricky fight, that’s it," she added.
Harrington never looked in trouble against her Colombian opponent, taking the first round on all five of the judges' scorecards, and Kenneth Egan, who won bronze for Ireland at Beijing 2008, believes the Dubliner has her sights set on back-to-back gold medals.
"There’s a lot at stake, and the pressure on Kellie today was massive," he told RTÉ Sport.
"We were all thinking this was going to be a really tricky fight for Kellie. She must have known something we didn't because she went out there and performed out of her skin.
"It was just amazing to watch. The first round was cagey, but she won it convincingly and even in the third round, the way she had her hands low, enjoying herself, making her opponent miss. It was sweet science at its finest.
"She looked so happy and comfortable in there. That’s when we know she's in form, when she’s enjoying herself. We’ve seen her smile a few times in the fight which is great to see. She’s so focused, so switched on.
"She’s going to be a force to be reckoned with, I really mean that. She’s really focused now and has her sights set, the gold medal is there but let’s just focus on the semi-final next.
"After the first two rounds, and the performance that Kellie put on, the third round was really easy for her to stick to her boxing, hands were low, and just work well.
"She’s having fun, and that’s when she’s at her best. The hands are loose, she’s so elusive and hard to hit."
Watch the 2024 Olympic Games with 14 hours of televised action on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player each day. Listen to extensive radio coverage on RTÉ Radio 1 and 2fm's Game On and follow each moment from Paris on RTÉ.ie, the RTÉ News app and all RTÉ digital platforms. Listen to the daily RTÉ Sport Olympics Podcast.
