‘tell me i can’t and i will – that’s my motto’

KNOCKOUT MOVES

From making history in women’s sport to becoming a two-time Olympic boxing champion, Nicola Adams is undoubtedly a trailblazer. And while she may have hung up the boxing gloves professionally in recent years, the fighter has plenty more on her to-do list.

Leeds born and bred, Nicola began boxing at just 12 years old and had to, quite literally, fight her way through a male-dominated industry. But as she sits down with OK! ringside after putting us through our paces in a tough Bodyform boxing class, it’s clear that the sportswoman – who beams from ear to ear throughout our chat – is as soft-centred as they come.

“I started boxing because my mum couldn’t get a babysitter for me and my brother, so she dropped us at an after-school gym class, and I fell in love,” recalls Nicola of her first interaction with the sport.

Fast-forward 17 years and Nicola is the first female boxer to become an Olympic champion after winning gold at London 2012. But it was not without its challenges, including the state of women’s boxing when she first entered a ring, and it has been tough getting to the top.

“Female boxing wasn’t really a thing, so we didn’t have the backing that men did,” says Nicola, now 41, who grew up in a time when women’s boxing was banned as a sport. “The male boxers would have a whole team behind them with doctors, new kits and all the funding. While the women had to fund everything themselves – we would have to pay for our own trips and even share kit to fight in, it was shocking.”

Thankfully, Nicola had a strong support system getting into the industry.

“I was the only female in my gym when I started, but I was lucky that everyone was treated equally. Looking back, I really appreciate that from my coach. But, obviously, when you go to other gyms you get the comments about women and how we can’t box, which I’ve never understood.

“You’re as good as the person who taught you, it doesn’t matter whether you’re male or female! I’ve always seen it as a challenge when someone has underestimated me. Every time someone would tell me I couldn’t do something, it would give me more motivation to do it. My motto is, ‘Tell me I can’t and I will.’”

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