Simran Kaur proves a hit as she lands GB call

The 17-year-old will link up with the squad in September after impressing the national coaches during an assessment in Sheffield last month.

Kaur, a five-time national youth champion, is hoping to now make the Olympic qualifiers next January with Tokyo 2020 very much a realistic target.

She said: “I’m really excited and happy, this is the next stepping stone.

“The Olympics is what I am aiming for and I believe I can get there.

“The assessment was tense. You know the coaches are always watching you. But I always felt I had done enough.”

Meteoric

Kaur’s achievement means she will soon be a fully-funded athlete and continues her near meteoric rise since first taking up the sport as a means of keeping fit.

Having started out at Len Woodall Boxing Club in Telford and later Wolverhampton’s Merridale ABC, she now travels to Northampton four times a week to train at Kings Heath Boxing Club.

Before joining up with GB, Kaur will first fight in Finland next month, before going for gold in the European Youth Championships at the end of the summer. She has three European silver medals from previous events.

“It is a really exciting time,” she said. “I just love boxing, the thrill of getting in the ring.

“It always comes down to just you and your opponent. I’m determined to give the next few months everything I have got.”

Former Hadley Learning Community School student Kaur will be joined on the journey by her brother Harry Dhillon, who acts as both a coach and mentor.

It was Harry who first introduced his sister to boxing five years ago.

He explained: “Simran tried a number

of sports but didn’t really take to any of them.

“Boxing was the last one and it was almost as though as soon as she stepped in the ring, she was transformed. She is a complete natural.

“The family are very proud of her and the GB call-up is so, so deserved for all the sacrifices she has made to get to this point.

“As her brother I make sure I am always there for her, always by her side.

“Boxing can be quite a lonely sport when you are out of the ring and training and it helps to have someone else there helping you along.

“We are going to support her all the way. Chances like this do not come along very often.”