Deirdre Nelson was granted a professional boxing licence by the
British Boxing Board of Control in February 1999, which gave her the right to box anywhere within the
European Boxing Union. However, the Boxing Union of Ireland (BUI) forbid her to box until guidelines on women’s boxing were issued by the European Boxing Union in September 1999. In 2001 Nelson won a sex discrimination case against the BUI due to this; she was awarded £1,500 in compensation. The Employment Equality Authority (based in
Dublin) stated that the BUI had discriminated against Nelson, violating the Employment Equality Act of 1977. ==Current Irish champions==