Sheffield youth charity boxes clever with team GB

A group of youngsters from DEC youth club in Darnall enjoyed an inspiring evening with sporting idols at the English Institute of Sport, ahead of the GB Boxing Championships earlier this month.

Commonwealth Games super heavyweight gold medallist Frazer Clarke and 2018 British champion middleweight Lewis Richardson joined the teenagers at the GB boxing training centre for a demonstration and Q&A session.

The initiative is part of a partnership between youth charity Sheffield Futures and GB Boxing.

Gail Gibbons, CEO at Sheffield Futures, said: “The partnership with GB Boxing is such a great fit with us.

“As part of the youth work and mentoring that is a common thread throughout all the services we provide, we are always encouraging young people to aspire and create the very best lives for themselves.

“Being able to meet role models, such as the athletes that are part of GB Boxing, gives our young people a window into what can be achieved with dedication and hard work.

“We are really grateful to the whole team at GB Boxing for creating these kinds of opportunities for the young people we support.”

The session was part of a three year charity partnership that began in 2017, which aims to use boxing as a tool to bolster Sheffield Futures’ community involvement work.

Speaking about the event, boxer Lewis Richardson, said: “It was a real pleasure to spend some time with the youngsters - sharing my journey with them, answering their questions and then going through the fundamentals of boxing.

“Being a role model for young people is not something I see myself as. I’m just a normal kid like them.

“But if I can help transform just one person and help put them in the right direction that means so much to me.

“This group of young men had something about them, and I can definitely see some of them going on to do good things in life if they make the right decisions now.”

Find out more about the work of Sheffield Futures at www.sheffieldfutures.org.uk