Nicola Adams won the first Olympic gold medal in women's boxing at the 2012 London Games.
Representing Great Britain, Adams won the women's flyweight final at the ExCeL Exhibition Centre on August 9, 2012. She defeated China's Ren Cancan by a score of 16–7 to become the first woman to win Olympic boxing gold.
Women's boxing made its Olympic debut in London with three divisions: flyweight, lightweight, and middleweight. Adams competed in the flyweight class, while Ireland's Katie Taylor won lightweight gold. India's Mary Kom, another major name in the division, earned a bronze medal.
The women's flyweight tournament used four-round bouts of two minutes each and awarded bronze medals to both losing semifinalists. The United States' Marlen Esparza joined Mary Kom as a bronze medalist. Adams later defended her title at the 2016 Rio Olympics.