Jane Couch

Jane Couch, MBE (born 14 August 1968) became the first officially licensed British female boxer in 1998. In a 14-year professional career, she won five world titles and announced her retirement from boxing on 1 December 2008. She has since become a boxing promoter.

The British Boxing Board of Control initially refused to grant Couch a professional licence on the sole ground that she was a woman, and argued that PMS made women too unstable to box. Claiming sexual discrimination and supported by the Equal Opportunities Commission, Couch managed to have this decision overturned by a tribunal in March 1998. However, some criticism followed as the British Medical Association called this result "a demented extension of equal opportunities".

Couch would later seek the right to fight a male opponent, but was unsuccessful. Of this, she said

Going into the ring against a man wouldn't bother me. I spar with blokes seven days a week so it's not as if it would be a new experience. It would mean an awful lot to me to appear at Wembley.

In 2001 she published an autobiography, "Jane Couch - Fleetwood Assassin".

Couch was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2007 Queen's Birthday Honours.

Her last fight, against Anne Sophie Mathis on 8 December 2007, resulted in a loss by technical knockout. In 2008 Couch competed in the reincarnation of Superstars.

She announced her retirement on 1 December 2008 and said she intended to continue as a boxing promoter. At the time, she said

"Boxing has been my life for a long time and it will always will be, but I'm not going to miss getting my head smashed in."

Statistics
Real name : Jane Couch
Nickname(s) : The Fleetwood Assassin
Rated at : Welterweight
(~139 pounds (63 kg))
Height : 67 in (1.7 m)
Nationality : United Kingdom
Birth date : 14 August 1968 (1968-08-14) (age 42)
Birth place : Fleetwood, Lancashire, England
Boxing record
Total fights : 39
Wins : 28
Wins by KO : 9
Losses : 11
Draws : 0
No contests : 0