Steve Collins, Ireland's most successful professional boxer, yesterday announced his retirement from the ring. The announcement, at a boxing awards ceremony in London, came only 24 hours after Collins's world super middleweight title defence, scheduled for next Saturday week, was cancelled because of a leg injury.

Collins was tearful on announcing his decision, but sources within boxing are already predicting that when he sheds his present disappointments the very strong call of the gym and physical combat might cause a change of mind.

The self-styled `Celtic Warrior', who had been training in the United States for his scheduled defence against Joe Calzaghe from Wales in Sheffield on October 11th, had developed an abscess on his right leg and had been advised by his doctor to withdraw from the bout.

That medical advice had been conveyed officially to the World Boxing Organisation (WBO) and to the fight promoter, Frank Warren, who responded by calling a press conference in London on Wednesday to announce that Collins had "been stripped" of the title and that Calzaghe and Chris Eubank would be matched for the "vacant title" with the winner becoming the new WBO champion.

This was later contradicted by the WBO, with an announcement that Collins would retain the title and would defend it against the winner of the "interim title" fight between Calzaghe and Eubank.

Collins's surprise announcement would now appear to give that fight official world title status.

Thus has ended (for the moment at least) a career which was never short of either success or controversy. As an amateur Collins had never made a great impact but won the Irish amateur middleweight title in 1986. The following year he surprised many when, having gone to the United States with an amateur international side, he failed to join the party when the time came to come home. He stayed on in the United States with a view to pursuing a professional boxing career.

He had worked as an electrician in the Guinness brewery in Dublin and worked in a similar line of business in Boston as he set about pursuing his dream. Collins joined the famous Petronelli brothers' gym in Brockton, near Boston, which had produced many of the world's best boxers and put a string of successful, but undistinguished victories behind him before winning the Irish middleweight title by beating Sammy Sytorey from Belfast on St Patrick's day in Boston in 1988. He won the US middleweight title in 1989 but got his first big break came when he managed to mount a challenge for the world middleweight title of Mike McCallum, then regarded as the best "pound for pound" boxer in the world. Collins went the full distance with McCallum, but suffered his first professional defeat.

The immediate reaction of McCallum was to announce that he had no intention of taking on Collins again. "I am sure that one day he will be champion but it won't be at my expense."

Collins made two other unsuccessful attempts to win a major middleweight title. He was beaten by Reggie Johnson in New Jersey in a WBA world title bout and lost to Sumbu Kalambay in Italy in a European title attempt.

These bouts had earned him a reputation for being tough and durable and difficult to beat. Success finally came his way, however, ironically in Sheffield, when he beat Chris Pyatt for the vacant WBO middleweight title on a stoppage in the fifth round in May of 1994.

Perhaps the most remarkable fight of his career was in the Green Glens Arena in Millstreet in Cork in March of 1995 when he challenged the then WBO super middleweight champion, Chris Eubank.

The venue had been described on British television as an old cow shed but that was not the only controversial incident in the run-up to the fight. Two weeks beforehand a "head-to-head" press conference was staged in Dublin and Collins attempted to steal Eubank's thunder. Eubank has always promoted himself as being a bit of a dandy, sporting high fashion suits, jodhpurs, a silvertopped cane and a monocle.

Collins, not to be outdone, turned up in a Rolls Royce, dressed from head to toe in Donegal tweeds. He was escorting, or being escorted by, an Irish wolfhound.

Collins then addressed the conference in Irish and, switching to English, accused Eubank of being a fraud and of betraying his AfroCaribbean roots. Eubank was furious, and after heated exchanges he stormed out. As he left Jurys Hotel the Lord Mayor of Dublin, John Gormley, offered to take him on a tour of the city. Eubank replied "Fuck the city. Fuck the city," and kept moving in the general direction of the airport. Better, or worse, was to follow. Collins announced on the eve of the fight in Millstreet that he had employed a hypnotist, Tony Quinn, to help him to prepare. He said he would be under hypnosis during the fight and that he would feel no pain and would not bleed.

Eubank fell for what was, in retrospect, a mischievous ruse and threatened to pull out. He was persuaded to go on with the fight, however, but he had lost a psychological battle and although he put Collins on the floor midway through the fight, he lost the title on a points decision. A rematch was soon put together and the sponsors, Beamish brewery, were instrumental in having this fight staged outdoors, in Pairc Ui Chaoimh. Collins won again, this time on a split decision.

The Irishman then defended the title in Dublin against Cornelius Carr. He went back to Millstreet and was successful against Neville Brown, and then agreed to defend his title against Nigel Benn, the former champion. This he did successfully on two occasions, and then beat the Frenchman, Frederic Sellier in February of this year.

His last fight was against Craig Cummings in Glasgow in July when the bout was stopped in round three.