{"id":58316,"date":"2021-12-19T13:31:56","date_gmt":"2021-12-19T13:31:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/?p=58316"},"modified":"2021-12-19T13:31:58","modified_gmt":"2021-12-19T13:31:58","slug":"stories-from-the-pandemic-the-return-of-boxing-in-wales","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2021\/12\/19\/stories-from-the-pandemic-the-return-of-boxing-in-wales\/","title":{"rendered":"Stories from the pandemic: The return of boxing in Wales"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Three Cardiff-based boxers share their experiences without the sport during <\/em>Covid<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

BOXING is back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After 18 months without amateur boxing competitions, the inaugural Welsh Box Cup took place in October 2021, marking the first domestic fixture since March 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During this time, gyms opened and closed leaving fighters in the dark over their futures in the sport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many boxers were left confused, frustrated, and upset.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of those boxers was me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the last three years, boxing has been a vital part of my everyday life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It became my outlet when life got too much and a way to express myself when nothing else would do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Without the sport, I felt lost and unstable, as if all meaning had been stripped from my life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was this very personal experience that led me to ask questions \u2014 how did other boxers deal with the pandemic? And how have things changed now that boxing competitions are back?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Chloe Perry<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Like many young boxers, 20-year-old Chloe Perry, from Cathays, fell into a rut when competitions stopped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe pandemic affected me really badly, I got into the habit of sitting in my room and playing video games all day. I lost a lot of motivation, and I was really down,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prior to the pandemic, Chloe was in a rich vein of form, winning the 2019 Welsh Championships and the 2020 BUCS Championships.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But this momentum would come to a grinding halt when gyms were closed across the country, leaving boxers like Chloe without a crucial stabilising force in their lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe lockdown stopped me in my tracks, I was in the form of my life and then everything changed,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBeing out of my routine of education and boxing every day threw me off. I put on a lot of weight over the pandemic and my mental health hit rock bottom.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Much of Chloe\u2019s youth was spent in combat sports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At just five she started kickboxing and developed quite the knack for it, winning countless titles including the prestigious English Open Championships. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the age of 14, she discovered that the talent was in her hands and switched to boxing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is when everything changed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI knew as soon as I stepped in the boxing gym that I wanted to take it further, it became an addiction,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While her friends were out partying, Chloe was in the gym perfecting her craft, tirelessly working away at her newfound obsession like it was a nine-to-five job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Boxing quickly became her priority and without it, life just wasn\u2019t the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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