British boxing legend Amir Khan has announced the end of his career in the ring.
The 35-year-old’s legacy includes winning a silver medal at the 2004 Olympics and becoming a unified world champion at light-welterweight.
He also challenged for world titles at welterweight and middleweight but was stopped in the sixth round of his last fight against long-time rival Kell Brook in Manchester in February.
Brook announced his own retirement from the sport last weekend.
Khan made the announcement in a short statement on Twitter this morning as he said: “It’s time to hang up my gloves.
“I feel blessed to have had such an amazing career that has spanned over 27 years.
“I want to say a heartfelt thanks and to the incredible teams I have worked with and to my family, friends and fans for the love and support they have shown me.”
Over his 40-fight professional career, the Bolton boxer won 34 bouts and lost six.
Khan first rose to prominence as a fresh-faced 17-year-old at the 2004 Olympics, where he lost to Mario Kindelan in their lightweight final in Athens.
But getting the silver meant he became the UK’s youngest boxing medallist at a games.
He gained revenge over the Cuban in his last amateur bout, which was watched by millions on ITV.
Image: Amir Khan reacts after losing his welterweight fight with Kell Brook at the AO Arena, Manchester, in February
‘I never want boxing to retire me’
Khan became a world champion in July 2009, defeating Andriy Kotelnik on points to secure the WBA super-lightweight title, and he then stopped Zab Judah to add the IBF belt two years later.
A disputed points loss to Lamont Peterson ended Khan’s world title reign, and he was halted by Danny Garcia while attempting to win the WBC and WBA belts in his next fight.
Khan moved up to middleweight to challenge Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez for the WBC belt, suffering a sixth-round knockout loss in May 2016 and was stopped by Terence Crawford in the sixth round of their WBO title fight in April 2019.
He eventually shared the ring with Sheffield fighter Brook this year, embracing his rival in the ring after their feud was finally ended.
However, Khan said retirement was “something to think about, definitely” in the immediate aftermath of the defeat, adding: “I never want boxing to retire me, I want to retire from boxing.”
Khan gained a new fan base outside the sporting world following an appearance on reality show ‘I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!’ in 2017.
