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Nicola Adams celebrates winning gold at Rio 2016.
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British double Olympic champion follows Katie Taylor into pro boxing

Nicola Adams will make her debut in April.

DOUBLE OLYMPIC CHAMPION Nicola Adams is turning professional after she was released from her contract with GB Boxing.

Adams became the first woman to win an Olympic boxing gold medal at the London Games on home soil in 2012 and retained her title in Rio de Janeiro last year.

The 34-year-old will not go for the hat-trick at Tokyo 2020, though, after leaving the World Class Performance Programme (WCPP) to pave the way for a switch to the professional ranks.

It follows the decision of Ireland’s Katie Taylor [2-0], also a gold medallist in 2012, to switch to the professional ranks last year when the lightweight signed a deal with Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing.

Adams has joined Frank Warren’s stable, alongside the likes of Billy Joe Saunders and Liam Smith, and the flyweight’s professional debut has been scheduled for 8 April in Manchester, with her second bout to be in Leeds, her hometown, in May.

Rob McCracken, performance director of GB Boxing, said: “Nicola has made a huge contribution to both the Olympic programme and the sport of boxing and I would like to thank her for everything she has done for GB Boxing since she joined the squad in 2010.

“She has won everything there is to win and her place in history is secured as the first woman to ever win a gold medal for boxing and then top it by winning a second one in Rio.

“She is a superb ambassador and has been a significant part of the success we have enjoyed at GB Boxing in the last eight years.

“We would have welcomed Nicola staying on for the Tokyo cycle, however we recognise her decision to pursue other opportunities and wish her every success in whatever she goes on to do next.

“Nicola will remain part of the GB Boxing family and will always receive a warm welcome whenever she visits our gym in Sheffield.”

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