A 15-year-old aspiring boxer said he had been “immature and troubled” before the sport helped him become a better person.
Ismael, from Peterborough, who attends Top Yard Boxing School in Newark Road, won gold at the National Development Championships on Sunday.
The tournament in Kettering, Northamptonshire showcases up-and-coming talent, and is a boost for the teenager’s dreams of boxing for Team GB one day.
He said he took up the sport two years ago after going through “years of getting into trouble and making silly choices”, and hoped his journey would inspire others.
“It’s really important for us to do something, it gets the mind off things going on at home or any personal stuff,” he said.
“I had to sacrifice a lot to get here, like spending time with friends, my diet, cold runs in the morning. It is a very hard journey.
“It is teaching me to be a better person. I look at people with empathy and understand they might be challenged. It has taught me resilience.
“Back in Year 7 to Year 9, I was immature and troubled and made silly choices in life and I have seen the repercussions of that.”
Top Yard School of Boxing in Peterborough was set up in 2017 by former amateur boxer brothers Hamad and Bilal Javed and is supported by a pool of coaches.
The club, which trains about 200 young people, operates in association with British Boxer and Olympic medallist Amir Khan.
Hamad Javed, 42, called him “a great support” for the club and said he regularly sent motivational videos to members.
He said: “Because of our community background, we attract a lot of Asian kids and children from the traveller community.
“When my brother and me started boxing at the age of 11, there weren’t many Asian kids doing it.”
Mr Javed added they had seen a rise in the number of fathers turning up to support their children.
“They might not have been supported when they were growing up, so they do try to be there for their kids, wanting the best for them.”
Ismael’s father Imran said he was “extremely proud” of his son.
“Anything that keeps boys off the streets is great,” he said.
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