"Boxing is the ultimate challenge. There's nothing that can compare to testing yourself the way you do every time you step in the ring"

Sugar Ray Leonard

 

On Friday November 29th I'll be climbing those three short steps up into the ring.....it's fight time! Boxing has always fascinated me - the Rocky films as a kid, staying up late to watch the likes of Nigel Benn, Chris Eubank, Lennox Lewis and the wonder of what goes through somebody's mind when they stand toe to toe with their opponent, so I thought it was time to give it a try whilst my body is still capable (some may argue my body stopped being capable a long time ago!).

I'm using this opportunity to raise awareness for The Alzheimer's Society. Here are a few facts about Dementia and what you can do to help me support the Charity:

-       Dementia affects 820,000 people in the UK

-       25 million in the UK have a family member or close friend with dementia

-       Dementia costs the UK economy £23 bn a year - more than cancer and heart disease combined

Despite these figures, dementia research is desperately underfunded.  The nurses and care staff who work with dementia patients are invaluable, but current medication is limited. The Alzheimer's Society provide care & support for those affected by Dementia and funding for medical research - their aim is to one day find a cure. Of every £1 donated 88p will go directly towards support, research and raising awareness. 

For those interested, the event will take place in Camden on Friday 29th November. Contact me for tickets (£25 each). If I'm still conscious there will be a huge party afterwards too! 

www.whitecollarboxinglondon.com

www.sb-pt.com

 

**Update Sun 24th Nov**

It's nearly time! I'll be honest, the road to this point has been tougher than I ever imagined. The training has been physical torture but I've enjoyed every moment - I'm fitter & stronger than ever before and 2 stone lighter than a year ago. But the real challenge has been mental. Keeping to a strict diet (and feeling guilty when I have the odd naughty treat!), avoiding alcohol, being the designated driver, waking up at 5am to go training and finding the motivation to continually get off my arse and push myself when all I really want is to order a pizza and watch TV! My team have been the ones that pushed me to new levels, those that have trained me and trained with me - you know who you are. 

The anticipation and excitement is unreal, it feels like the build up to Christmas as a kid! Everyone wants to talk about boxing and ask me about my preparation/opponent/tactics/entrance music etc etc! I'll admit I've turned into a boxing bore, but it's good to know everyone around me has too! Each boxer gets a standard allocation of 25 tickets, which most struggle to sell....I've sold 79 and I can't wait to hear the noise you all make! 

When this page was started the fundraising target was £500 and I wondered if I was aiming too high....at the time of writing we're at £1,280! Donations have come from friends, family, colleagues & clients. It's seems the cause has touched a lot of people's lives and some of the conversations I've had have been emotional and truly humbling - they make me realise the real achievement has been raising support and awareness for the charity, so in that regard I've already won no matter what happens on Friday. 

God only knows what I'll do with my spare time when this over. Maybe I'll sign up for the next show in March... 

Thank you for your all your support, donations, pep talks, encouragement and motivation 

Billy