Gold Medal Goal for Tammara Thibeault

By William Dumoulin

Photo Credit: Eddie Keogh

Since the inclusion of women in Olympic boxing in 2012, Canada has seen several of its top female boxers participate in this prestigious tournament. Mary Spencer, Mandy Bujold, Caroline Veyre, Ariane Fortin and Myriam Da Silva have all had the chance to compete, but none have managed to bring home the gold medal. This time could be different for Canada, as Shawinigan native Tammara Thibeault has a real chance of returning home with the most significant recognition in the sports world: the coveted Olympic gold medal.

This will be the second time participating in this prestigious tournament for the 75 kg category boxer. With high expectations of reaching the podium, she unfortunately lost in the quarterfinals at the Tokyo Games in 2021 to Dutch boxer Nouchka Fontijn. This 5th place finish did not satisfy the 27-year-old boxer, who immediately committed to another Olympic cycle with the goal, this time, of reaching the top of the Olympic podium.

Her journey to the Paris 2024 Games has been quite impressive. Tammara has remained undefeated since the Olympics, winning the World Amateur Championships (2022), the Commonwealth Games (2022), and the Pan American Games (2023). Her victory at the Pan American Games confirmed her qualification for the Paris Olympics.

For the record, the last time Canada won a gold medal in boxing at the Olympic Games was in 1988 when the legendary Lennox Lewis won the tournament in the heavyweight division. Will Tammara be able to make history by becoming the first Canadian woman to win the Olympic gold medal? Only time will tell.

A strong performance in this tournament would definitely create great opportunities for Thibeault in professional boxing. Turning pro would be the logical next step for the 27-year-old boxer, considering she would have accomplished everything at the amateur level.

However, before thinking too far ahead, she will need to deliver at the Olympics. The competition will start on July 27 and end on August 10. For the 75 kg category, the round of 16 will take place on July 31, the quarterfinals on August 4, the semifinals on August 8, and the grand final on August 10.