'Over the moon' Savannah Marshall returns home to Hartlepool after winning world boxing title
Video report by ITV Tyne Tees Sports Correspondent Simon O'Rourke
After being crowned WBO Middleweight champion, Savannah Marshall was back in Hartlepool to catch up with family and friends.
Simon O'Rourke was there to speak to the 29-year-old after she became the third boxer, and the first woman, from the North East to win a world title when she defeated Scotland's Hannah Rankin.
Marshall says she hasn't fully realised what she has achieved yet.
She said: "I'm still on cloud nine. I haven't slept since Saturday. I'm absolutely over the moon. I've just come back to Hartlepool today. I've got to go and see my Nanna, all my friends, so I've got a bit of a tour after this."
Savannah's mother Christine is bursting with pride at her daughter's achievement.
She said: "I am absolutely over the moon and when she won it the other night, honest, I was ecstatic. Really, really pleased."
"I think it's really good for young kids in the town. They all look up to Savannah and there's a lot of young girls joining the boxing now and I'm just thrilled to bits."
Savannah twice had world title fights postponed due to coronavirus. Most recently when her trainer, Peter Fury, tested positive.
Those setbacks didn't hold Marshall back, as she stopped Rankin in the seventh round of their fight at Wembley.
She said of her opponent: "Hannah's a tough girl. She's got plenty of heart and she'd never been stopped before, so all the pieces of the puzzle fit in the end. Best result possible."
"Hartlepool's where it all began for me in my amateur club on the headland and I'm still really close to my amateur coach, Tim, who's like a second dad.
"Hartlepool has always been kind to me and they've always looked out for me, always supported me."
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