Katie Taylor’s Rio spot in doubt after first defeat since 2011

Katie Taylor has suffered her first defeat since 2011, leaving her hopes of qualification for Rio 2016 in the balance.

The Olympic gold medallist was beaten by Azerbaijan’s Yana Alekseevna in the European Olympics qualifier semi-finals in a unaniumous decision.

After her defeat in Turkey Taylor must now wait until the Women’s World Boxing Championships in Astana, Kazakhstan, next month in order to book a place in Brazil.

Victory in Friday’s semi-final would have assured Taylor her place at the Olympics, but she was left playing catch-up after all three judges awarded the opening round to Alekseevna.

It was a bright start to the fight, with both boxers, Taylor inparticular, looking to trade on the front foot. A flurry of punches halfway through the round saw both boxers land cleanly but the dangerous counter-punching of Alekseevna was enough to get a full sweep on the cards.

Taylor needed a response in the second round but it got off to a very cagey start, the Bray fighter probing with the jab but struggling to tag her busier opponent.

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A couple of sharp left hands, including one on the bell, were enough to see Taylor awarded the round, with two of the three judges scoring her in front.

Any momentum Taylor gathered in the second failed to tell in the third however, with Aleeksvna again the far busier of the two in the knowledge one good round would likely see her over the line.

It was tentative from Taylor, looking for a decisive shot which never came, and as a result all three judges awarded the third round to her opponent

Taylor finished strongly in the fourth, buzzing around and landing a few overhand rights but again Alekseevna’s counter-punching was dangerous and the five-time World Champion found herself getting consistently tagged as she looked to force the pace.

It was too little too late for Taylor who saw Alekseevna given a unanimous decision, 39-37 across the cards, and must now wait until May to qualify for the Olympics.

Meanwhile Nicola Adams booked her place at the games after cruising to victory.

The 33-year-old scored a unanimous decision win over Marielle Hansen of Norway to ensure she will defend her 2012 gold medal in Brazil.

It means Adams will get the chance to become the first British boxer to win two Olympic titles since Harry Mallin in Paris in 1924.

Adams started aggressively against her experienced opponent, repelling Hansen’s advances and taking it clearly on the scorecard.

Despite getting a little wayward with her shots in the middle rounds, Adams finished with a flourish to complete a shut-out victory and book her place on the plane to Rio.

The Women’s World Championships, where Taylor will need to reach the semi-finals to qualify for Rio, take place in Astana from May 19th-27th.