MOSSELY. A figure in women’s boxing in France, Estelle Mossely hopes to win another gold medal this summer in Paris. Biography, achievements, Tony Yoka, find out who the French boxer is.
Estelle Mossely was born on August 19, 1992 in Créteil (Val-de-Marne), to a father of Congolese origin and a mother of Ukrainian origin. She grew up with her two brothers in a house in Chennevières-sur-Marne, in the suburbs of Paris, where her parents decided to settle after meeting in Ukraine. During her childhood, little Estelle tried several disciplines: classical dance, swimming, figure skating… Before finally opting for boxing at the age of 12, after seeing fights on television. She would never take off her gloves, even though she was the only girl at the Red Star Club in Champigny.
Estelle Mossely joined the French team when she was in her final year of high school in 2010. The pace was tough, but the boxer graduated and joined an engineering school, all the while continuing her career in the ring. She won her first fights when women’s boxing made its debut at the London Olympics in 2012. She would have to wait four more years to discover the Olympic Games, in Rio in 2016. Crowned world champion a few weeks before the 2016 Olympics, Estelle Mossely arrived in Rio as a favorite for the gold medal in her -60kg category.
On her 24th birthday, August 19, 2016, Mossely went through a clean sheet and beat China’s Yin Junhua in the final, becoming the first French female boxer to win this Olympic title. Two days before her partner, a certain Tony Yoka, imitated her and was also crowned Olympic champion. The couple immediately changed dimension in France and both decided to turn professional in 2017. Estelle Mossely, however, quickly put a stop to her career to give birth to her first child, Ali, born in August 2017. The couple, after a first separation, welcomed a second child, Magomed, in 2020. Tony Yoka and Estelle Mossely finally divorced in 2021.
Why attempt a comeback for the Paris Olympics?
Gold medalist in Rio in 2016, Estelle Mossely, now a professional with two young children, did not participate in the Tokyo Olympic Games, scheduled for 2020 but ultimately held in 2021 due to Covid-19. However, she took on the crazy challenge of winning another gold medal, eight years later, at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. With different assets and the wisdom of a woman, now mother of two children, who has managed to combine family life, training and competitions. Endowed with incredible determination and exemplary strength of character, the boxer wants to prove to everyone that she is capable of doing it.
What is Estelle Mossely’s track record?
Estelle Mossely, who was also decorated with the Legion of Honour in 2016, won her first medals as an amateur, with a silver medal at the European Championships and a bronze medal at the World Championships in 2014, not to mention a silver medal at the European Games in 2015. In 2016, she achieved her consecration with a world champion title and gold at the Rio Olympic Games. In 2023, back to box as an amateur in preparation for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, she won the bronze medal at the European Games.