Mattress
www.mattressonline.co.uk
Nicola Adams suffered her first defeat in almost two years as she crashed out of the European Championships at the quarter-final stage in Bucharest.
Olympic champion Adams was made to pay for a slow start as she lost a close points decision to experienced Bulgarian opponent Stoyka Petrova.
She had been hoping to become England’s first double European champion, having won her first title in Rotterdam in 2011.
But Adams now has to shift her attention to the Commonwealth Games, with women’s boxing making its debut in Glasgow later this summer.
Adams said: Although I was not at my best today, I felt I had done enough to go through however sometimes the judges just do not see it your way.
The most important thing is to come back stronger than ever and my priority now is to make sure I am in the best possible condition for the Commonwealth Games and the World Championships later in the year.
There was better news of Natasha Jonas, who guaranteed herself a medal in the 64kg category with a unanimous win over Valentina Alberti of Italy – she joins Stockport’s Stacey Copeland in Friday’s semi-finals.
And Ireland’s Katie Taylor stayed on course for her sixth European title in a row with a final-round stoppage win over Romania’s Lavinia Mera.
Her team-mates Michaela Walsh and Joanna Lambe bowed out.
www1.skysports.com