Grace Rock hoping to inspire future athletes

Rock, 19, from Priorslee, has achieved stunning success in the combat sport in which she only began practicing aged 12 as injuries curtailed her promising gymnastics career.

The University of Worcester student won two golds in the 2017 World Championships before taking a silver and bronze at a heavier weight last October.

She fought five times, each a two-minute contest where two points are awarded for a head shot and one for a body, to claim silver in her preferred ring discipline, while bagging a bronze on the matt.

Rock had the chance of making it six British titles on the spin taken from her last month because of the coronavirus outbreak.

Her packed schedule would include training four or five days a week at LSK Kickboxing Club in Telford and once each month with the England squad in Birmingham, but Rock is now having to make do with a specialist fitness programme provided by England squad leader Neil Kelly which includes runs, circuit and abdominal training several times each week.

Having achieved so much in the sport inside her teenage years Rock, who competes in the 19-35 age category at -55kg, hopes to become an influence to the next generation.

"I feel like I've achieved my ultimate goal so I'm struggling as to what to do next," said Rock, who is in her second year studying PE and Outdoor Education.

"We were hoping to get kickboxing in the Olympics but it's said to be too brutal a sport.

"I would still like to do more competing, hopefully I can make it gold in next year's World Championships.

"But I want to be inspirational to young people and like a role model.

"When our coach Steve McMullen is on holiday or ill I take over. It's really good because we've had a lot of youngsters in now and I see a lot of young potential.

"There's about 50 of us at the club. We are like a big family and all look out for each other. Only seven of us compete, Dan Lockley and Joe Smith fought in the World Championships too."

Lockley took two golds while Smith was also in the medals, proving there is talent in abundance at the Hadley Learning Centre club.

Rock experienced competing in a higher weight category as well as an older age category in Glasgow in October in the most recent International Combat Association (ICO) world event.

Having previously struck gold aged 16-18, she turned to opponents more than 10 years her senior and had to be bumped up to the -60kg, having worked down to 53kg, due to lack of opposition at -55kg.

"I was the underdog this time, which is definitely different," she added. "I had only just turned 19, but it is all good experience.

"I was against people in their 20s and 30s who are almost able to train full-time while I had to juggle around Uni.

"The change of weight definitely made it tougher. If you kick them they don't budge! And they can knock you over.

"But we train with loads of bigger weights and sizes just in case it happens so I can be adaptable."

Kickboxing may be quite the switch from gymnastics, but Rock explains that her ability to be flexible serves her well on the matt and in the ring.

"I found early on that because I was really flexible from gymnastics I was able to stop being caught by kicks," Rock explained.

"I never thought I would do so well. I only started it for fun and a bit of self-defence but because of competing in gymnastics I knew I wanted to attend competitions and after three or four competitions I was invited to the England squad and it all went from there."

Despite approaching eight years in the sport it perhaps unsurprisingly still remains too much for mum Sarah.

She added: "My mum hates me doing this sport. She does not watch any of my competitions, apart from the World Championships in 2017. She does not like her little daughter getting beat up."