Ex-world boxing champion Savannah Marshall considers future

SportMail understands the Hartlepool star is weighing up her future following eight glorious but gruelling years at the top of the sport where she is rated as one of British amateur boxing's greats.

The 25-year-old, who has won almost all there is to win in amateur boxing, has not fought since an unlucky quarter-final exit at the Olympics.

Marshall is currently part of the GB Boxing programme in Sheffield, where she is the longest-serving international, following the departure of a number of high-profile team-mates to the pro game, including Nicola Adams.

The Headland ABC middleweight could remain in camp to build towards the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Australia and the Worlds, turn professional or hang up her gloves.

Marshall enjoyed a breather following Rio where many pundits felt she was unlucky not to get a medal after receiving a bad decision in the last eight against arch rival Nouchka Fontijn, from the Netherlands.

The Tim Coulter-trained boxer resumed full training in January, including a gruelling week in Spain with her GB team-mates, though she did not travel with the British squad to the Strandja tournament inBulgaria, which featured the ring return of fellow Rio boxer and North-East neighbour, Pat McCormack.

The boxer, known as the Silent Assassin, has enjoyed an incredible career, winning medals in every championship, with the exception of the Olympics.

Marshall clinched silver in her first World Championships in 2010 when the teenager lost a close U69 kilo final 5-4 to Andrecia Wasson, from the USA.

But her finest hour came two years later after moving up to U75 kilos.

She became the only boxer to defeat middleweight legend Claressa Shields en route to the final in China where she beat Elena Vystropova in the final to become only the second amateur World Champion from Britain after Frankie Gavin and GB's first female world gold medallist.

After going into the Olympics as favourite for middleweight gold, Marshall suffered a shock exit at London 2012 and then went through an injury-interrupted period.

But she came back with by European Union and World Combat Games gold and then the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

Marshall completed a full set of World medals with bronze at the 2016 championships in Kazakhstan.

It took her to her second Olympic Games, where many pundits felt she was harshly judged in the quarter-finals against Fontijn.

As well as being part of the GB programme, Marshall has been supported on the Sky Scholarship scheme since 2012 and is currently studying for a degree at Teesside University.