Mikaela Laurén secured the WBF light welterweight world championship by defeating Lena Venjacob via a unanimous decision in Hamburg, Germany, making her the oldest female boxing world champion in history at 50 years old, aftonbladet.se reported. The title bout, held during the Boxen Im Norden event, ended when Venjacob threw in the towel after 43 minutes of action in the ring.
The victory marks Laurén’s eighth career title. Following the match, she stated to the German newspaper Bild that she considers this belt her most meaningful achievement and believes she is in the best shape of her life.
Title Bout and Opponent Change in Hamburg
The championship fight took place at the Große Freiheit 36 venue in Hamburg, hurbra.se reported. Laurén was originally scheduled to face Mexican boxer Karla Ramos Zamora for the World Boxing Foundation belt. However, Zamora experienced entry issues traveling to Germany, prompting a late-notice replacement, expressen.se reported. Lena Venjacob, 35, stepped in to take the fight against the Swedish veteran.
The matchup was sanctioned by the WBF, a separate organization from the four major bodies in professional boxing—the WBC, WBA, IBF, and WBO, hurbra.se noted. Laurén previously challenged for the same WBF welterweight title in November 2024, losing to Michaela Kotaskova on a unanimous decision.
Retirement Reversals and Career Timeline
Laurén previously stepped away from professional boxing in 2019 before staging a comeback in 2024, aftonbladet.se reported. Earlier in 2024, she appeared on a Stockholm boxing card before preparing for her autumn title opportunity in Germany. Her return followed a bout on May 9, when she faced Vaida Masiokaite in Stockholm in what was initially billed as her final career appearance, hurbra.se reported. After losing that six-round fight, she decided to return to training.
While some previous coverage described Laurén as Sweden’s oldest professional boxer upon her spring appearance, historical records show male boxers like Torsten Ahlin competed professionally at older ages, according to hurbra.se. Nevertheless, Laurén stands as the oldest Swedish woman to enter a professional boxing ring.
Regarding her overall resume, sources differ on the exact count of her world titles. While she counts eight total championships following her win in Hamburg, other historical tallies categorize her as a multi-time champion with varying totals depending on the sanctioning bodies and periods calculated.
Record Status and Guinness Verification
With her victory at age 50, Laurén aims to surpass the age threshold held by the current record-holder recognized by Guinness World Records as the oldest female world champion in boxing, hurbra.se reported. That distinction previously belonged to American boxer Alicia Ashley, who captured a world title at 48 years and 67 days old on October 29, 2015, according to hurbra.se data.
While boxing outlets and Laurén’s team point to her age as a historic milestone, there is no public confirmation that Guinness World Records has formally certified the WBF light welterweight title as the basis for a new official record, hurbra.se noted.
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