Mighty Atom lands a punch for women as she returns to her home city with honour

And now Barbara Buttrick has landed another blow for women by becoming the first female to be inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame, alongside ring legends such as Muhammad Ali and Sugar Ray Robinson.

Ms Buttrick, 80, who now lives in Miami, said she was pleased to have her place in the Hall of Fame during a visit to St Paul's Amateur Boxing Club in Hull.

"It feels really good," she said. "It shows things are changing with regards to women's boxing."

At 4ft 11in and with a fighting weight of just 98lb, Ms Buttrick may not have seemed cut out for such a physically demanding sport, but she never looked back after falling in love with the fight game at the age of 13.

The only daughter of a shopkeeper from Cottingham, near Hull, she became hooked after reading about Polly Burns, who fought in boxing booths between 1914 and 1918.

Frustrated by the lack of opportunities for women, the young pugilist began punching with boys before leaving home aged 18 for the bright lights of London.

She said: "I decided that was what I wanted to do. I started by punching in the back yard with the boys in 1945. Then when I was 18 I decided to go to London.

"My mum was not happy but she said as I was 18 she could not stop me. At that time I couldn't get on the shows, and women's boxing was frowned upon. So I went on the boxing booths and would challenge the crowd."

By 1954, after a move to the US, she was fighting competitively and three years later became the first woman to win a world title at bantamweight, beating the heavier Phyllis Kugler on a unanimous points decision.

A flyweight world title would follow. She suffered only one defeat in 18 professional fights.