Nicola Adams says it is a “dream come true” to have inspired the next generation of female boxers as they prepare to showcase their talent at the Paris Olympics.
Adams has always been a trendsetter. From being the only girl in her boxing gym when she first put on the gloves, to becoming the first female boxer to represent England, and then capitalising when boxing first became an Olympic sport.
Women’s boxing made its debut at London 2012 and she sealed her place in history by becoming the first woman to win an Olympic boxing gold medal, changing not only her life but the entire profile of the sport in the United Kingdom.
“Boxing has been and still is everything to me. It’s shaped who I am and it gave me a platform to break barriers for women’s sport,” Adams tells The Independent.
“It’s not just a sport, it’s a way of life that taught me discipline and resilience and the importance of fighting for what you believe in.
“It’s just been incredibly gratifying and humbling to know that I’ve inspired the next generation of female boxers and seeing young girls lace up and put their gloves on and step into the ring means everything to me, especially because they saw me do it.”
Adams had to fight constantly for the sport’s recognition before it was added to the Olympic roster in 2009, women struggled to find coaches and other training necessities. When she was a child, Adams had friends who were turned away from boxing gyms and were told that they couldn’t train there, or they didn’t have the facilities needed to admit women.
“I was the only girl in my boxing club for at least a good 10 years,” she says. “It’s changed so much now and it’s so good to see because I feel like when the Olympics is on, it’s the only time that you see lots of different sports that have women involved besides the more common ones like football and boxing.”
Adams defended her Olympic gold at the 2016 Games in Rio, becoming the first British boxer to retain an Olympic title since Harry Mallin in 1924.
One of Britain’s medal hopes at the upcoming Paris Olympics is Chantelle Reid, a 26-year-old from Derby who returned from a six-year break to qualify for the Games. Reid was a teenager when Adams won gold in 2012, and the 41-year-old believes the current athlete has a good chance of reaching a podium.
“For me to see them doing it now, it really is a dream come true,” Adams says.
“Because when I first started out a lot of people didn’t even know that women boxed so then to go from that to winning two Olympic gold medals and then turning pro and seeing everybody else coming behind me, and not have to fight and work as hard as I did to break down the barriers and break down the doors just to do the sport they love – it’s awesome.”
Adams will travel to the Paris Olympics to work with the BBC on their coverage of the Games but is content to be in her new role rather than the gruelling training boxers subject themselves to during an Olympic cycle. But she still wants to carry on the fight for equality in boxing and has looked to other sports for their watershed moments.
“I feel like for women’s football, the Euros final was the turning point of ‘hey women’s football is here and we’re here to stay and we’re achieving great things’ and I feel like they should be on the same pay as the men, they train just as hard”, she explains.
“Because football still is – like women’s boxing – they’re still trying to fight the battle, trying to get the equal pay, and it’s come such a long way.”
For Adams, it would be her “dream” to get her event on par with men’s and has looked at the likes of UFC as an example where men and women are showcased together on a similar level. Always a trailblazer, she is still striving to ensure that women’s boxing one day gets the same treatment.
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