German fighter Sophie Alisch retires at just 23

Undefeated German boxer Sophie Alisch has announced her retirement at the age of just 23.

Alisch, 10-0 (1), has said on Instagram that she intends to retire from boxing in order to pursue a cycling career, with the aim of competing in the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.

In her Instagram video, Alisch said: “They call it a new chapter, but it’s the same fire, just a sharper edge. The hardest thing isn’t standing on solid ground, it’s having the courage to begin again. This is not an ending. It’s an evolution. From the fire of elite boxing to the rhythm of pro cycling.”

The video goes on to show her hanging up her boxing gloves and, instead, getting on her racing bike.

She wrote in a note accompanying her Instagram post: “Talent gets you started, hunger keeps you going. Restless, relentless, ready to go. You trade comfort for purpose. Certainty for curiosity. You don’t wait for perfect, you move. Unsure, but unstoppable. This isn’t a step back. It’s a leap forward.”

The best, she adds, is yet to come.

The Berlin-born fighter, now based in Mallorca, was last seen in the ring in November in Newcastle when she outpointed Marina Sakharov over six rounds. That marked her second UK fight, following her penultimate bout, in 2023, against Gemma Ruegg at the York Hall in Bethnal Green.

The entirety of Alisch’s career prior to her two fights in the UK had taken place in Germany. She turned professional in 2019 in Koblenz, then fought around the nation until her final two fights on German soil in Berlin and Cologne in 2022.

As an amateur, Alisch won bronze at the European Junior Championships in 2017, but it is understood that her professional career slowed and faltered after her promoters Sauerland were taken over by Wasserman.

Alisch declared in the Instagram video: “My next chapter is only showing myself what I am capable of. At the moment, I am right at the beginning. For me, it’s like learning how to walk.”