KELLIE HARRINGTON made history after retaining her Olympic gold medal in Paris on Tuesday night.
The popular Irishwoman became a double Olympic champion by besting Wenlu Yang at Roland Garros on Tuesday night.
The 34-year-old was backed by a boisterous Irish crowd, who cheered her on towards her crowning glory.
Compared to Tokyo, when Covid-19 regulations meant her family was not able to attend, her loved ones were able to travel last night.
Amongst those who made the trip was wife Mandy, with whom Kellie shared in a loving embrace after the final bell.
Here, SunSport takes a look at the life of the uber popular Dublin boxer.
How old is Kellie Harrington?
Kellie Harrington was born on December 11, 1989, making her 34 years of age.
She is a proud native of Portland Row, a community whose tight-knit nature was on display during her homecoming as an Olympic champion three years ago.
Her family and friends greeted her as a conquering hero when she came home from Tokyo.
Her 2021 homecoming was atop an open-top bus, where Disney mega-fan Harrington beamed to her adoring public with a Lion King plushie in her hand.
This time around, however, she declared that she intends on making her entrance on foot.
She said: “I am super proud of where I come from, and all those people always have my back.
“Whether I win or whether I lose, and that’s when you see who’s really there, when the chips are down, they’re there for me when the chips are down and I can’t thank those people enough.
“I can’t wait to get home and see all those people, Portland Row is going to be absolutely hopping when we get home and there won’t be a bus.
“This time I’ll be able to walk down the street, celebrate and meet everybody and thank them.”
Who is Mandy Loughlin?
Kellie Harrington has been in a relationship with Mandy Loughlin since 2009.
Both are Dubliners but while the Harrington is a proud northsider from Portland Row, Mandy is from Foxrock.
They met through boxing as Mandy also competed at a high level before hanging up her gloves.
She still teaches boxercise classes for work so they’re both lifelong fans of the sweet science.
Despite being a seasoned boxer herself, Mandy prefers not to watch Kellie’s fights as she finds it too nerve-racking.
Speaking to The Irish Sun ahead of the Tokyo Olympics, she said: “I won’t be watching any of the fights.
“I’ll be holding the phone in anxiety texting everybody to see how she’s getting on.
“I can’t watch when she fights at all. I’ll be glued to my phone and I’ll have a few people who will text me updates.
“I haven’t watched a fight in a long long time.”
When did they get married?
Kellie and Mandy tied the knot in April 2022.
Harrington and her new wife looked over the moon as pal Faye O’Rourke, lead singer of Soda Blonde, shared a picture on Instagram as they cut into their wedding cake.
Harrington also shared a photo of her wedding cake which was produced by Cakes Glorious Cakes by Anne.
The ceremony took place in Dublin with the party afterwards happening in the Old Spot pub on Bath Avenue on the south side.
And at the party the couple danced the night away with a video captured by O’Rourke showing them throwing shapes to 80s smash hit Smalltown Boy by Bronski Beat.
The Olympic boxing hero broke her social media silence after the magical day as she posted a photo from the day on Instagram.
The pic Kellie shared was taken from afar by a friend while the happy couple posed for professional photos closer up.
Harrington wrote: “Thank you for capturing Eoin Kirwan Photography capturing Mandy and myself yesterday.”
Back in January, they were thrown into mourning following the untimely death of their pet dog and “best friend”, Macy.
When did they buy a house?
A few days later, the newly weds bought their first house together in the Fairview area in north Dublin.
A Facebook post from DNG Fairview revealed the news as they shared a photo of the Tokyo gold medal winner and her new keys.
The post read: “Our Senior Negotiator Rachel Cunningham, DNG Fairview is delighted today to hand over the keys to the wonderful Kellie Harrington and wish her all the happiness in her new home. Your move our people.”
It had been a long road to get there, however, as despite her Olympic heroics, even Harrington found it tough trying to get a mortgage.
She told The Irish Independent: “Now I understand how bloody hard it is for other people as well.
“It’s nearly made impossible for young people to get a foot on that property ladder.
“I think I’m nearly sorted but it’s been hard. The properties around the city that nobody wanted before, now everybody wants them.
“This is where we’re from and we can’t purchase a property where we’re from, we can’t move back into the area.
“Times are really s**t for everybody and the housing crisis just seems to be absolutely atrocious and I feel awful for people who are bending over backwards working and trying to build up enough to get up a mortgage. It’s just terrible.
“I can understand why they want their own home because if they have kids, they don’t want their kids to be in the same position that they were in.
“People ask, ‘Why not just rent?’ But why would you rent when you’re spending more on that than you would on a mortgage? Once you have a mortgage, you have something to pass down to your kids, to take the burden off them.”
Since moving in, they have been hard at work putting their personal touch to the gaff.
In June, Harrington gave fans a behind-the-scenes look at her newly refurbished house– showing off a stunning transformation.
The lightweight shared a video of the new-look home on Instagram, giving her almost 63,000 followers a virtual tour.
She said: “A vision that took time, a vision many said I was mad for having, but a vision I am glad we stuck with making it a reality
“Really looking forward to making many great memories with @mandypandie_pie after the Olympic Games.
“Home is wherever and what you make it”
The culmination of the renovation works was stunning, with black-and-white checker pattern tiling and a pink-painted front door, while the exterior was changed to bare brick.
The video also zoomed in on her post-box, which brandished an Olympics logo – reflecting the Dubliner having won a gold medal in Tokyo.