Olympic boxer Mandy Bujold has exited the ring for the last time as the 33-year-old from Kitchener, Ont., has announced her official retirement from the sport.
“Boxing will always be my passion and even if I’m not stepping into the ring for another bout I will continue to stay involved in the sport that has given me so much,” she said on Instagram.
The two-time Olympian thanked all of her supporters and says she is finally taking the time to celebrate her storied career.
“As an athlete I was always so focused on the next big event that many times I didn’t even realize how big some of my accomplishments were,” Bujold wrote.
“Now that I am starting to think beyond the boxing ring I am actually able to appreciate the journey I’ve been on and all the amazing pieces that came with it.”
Bujold came to international attention last summer after she was denied entry into the 2021 Olympic Games after the sport’s governing body made the decision to use a time period of matches for qualification that she had taken off to have a baby.
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She was able to win an appeal to gain entry into the Beijing Games, where she was eliminated in the first round.
Afterwards, she mentioned she was likely to retire but made her decision official on Wednesday.
The Kitchener native also competed in the Rio 2016 Games in Brazil, where it was believed she had a chance to medal.
Unfortunately, she got sick, spending a night in hospital before she was ousted in the quarterfinals.
Over her storied career, she collected two Pan Am gold medals (2011 and 2015) and as well as a bronze medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Games.
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