Lauren Price spent almost 20 years dreaming of what it would be like to step on an Olympic podium, to occupy the highest spot. At eight years old, perhaps the image in her mind was a simple one. As the years went by, maybe the questions began to arise: How weary would her legs feel? How many bruises would her hands hold? How heavily would the gold medal hang?
At 27 years old, in a boxing ring in Tokyo, Price would get her answers. Yet they would also force her to ask new questions, and to dream new dreams.
“That was the highlight of my career and probably always will be,” the Welsh welterweight tells The Independent, almost four years on. “I thought it probably would’ve been a bit tougher than it was, but as soon as I got my hand raised, that feeling standing on top of the podium… I can’t really put it into words.
“All the years of hard work, I was backed by my grandparents to believe in my dreams,” she says of the people who raised her in Caerphilly. “To achieve that was special. For me, it was watching the Olympic Games at the age of eight, watching Kelly Holmes win gold. She was the one who inspired me to go to the Olympics.
“When I came back to the Valleys, back to my nan, having been away from her for six weeks, it was an unbelievable feeling. And having Britain and Wales behind me, it kind of put my face on the map. Just to even go to the Olympics, to get in, is a massive achievement. But to win gold, there’s no better or bigger feeling.”
That was the case at first, anyway. Once the elation passed, however, an altogether different feeling took hold.
“It’s mad because, even though I won gold…” Price starts. “You don’t really understand until you go through it, but you go through a bit of a depression thing, because all I thought about for all them years was the Olympics. Once I achieved it and it was over, it was a mad feeling.”
And so Price had to learn to dream those new dreams: of a professional career, of world titles.
“I had a bit of downtime after the Olympics, because we’d been through a lot, non-stop for years,” she says. “I went on holiday, had about half-a-year off, ticking over but still waiting for pro contracts to get sorted. Then [came] the high of turning pro and having new goals, new dreams. You’re right back on it.”
By June 2022, Price had turned pro. Barely one year later, she had made history. For Price’s fight with Kirstie Bavington, the first British title in the history of women’s boxing was created. Price produced a clinic against Bavington, a 10-round shutout for three scorecards of 100-90. Barely one year after that, she was a world champion.
“In terms of accolades, nothing is gonna beat that Olympic gold medal,” she stresses, not for the first or last time, “but the night I faced Jessica McCaskill in Cardiff – in front of my Welsh fans – was a night I’ll remember for the rest of my life. Best night of my life, in terms of atmosphere and support.”
The fight ended in strange fashion, with McCaskill’s left eye swollen gruesomely shut after a clash of heads. In the penultimate round, the bout was called off, and Price was named a clear winner on the scorecards. The manner of victory did not matter: she had fulfilled a new dream.
On Friday, Price will look to claim more gold. In the opposite corner of the ring, at London’s iconic Royal Albert Hall, will be Natasha Jonas – a veteran of the sport, a multi-weight champion, the WBC and IBF title holder.
Many words could be written about Jonas’s career. Price only offers a few, though. “I just think I’m in my prime, I believe I’m the better boxer, faster and stronger. I rate Tash, she’s decent, but I just think I’m on another level.”
Perhaps Friday night will mark a passing of the torch, as the Britons clash atop an all-women’s card. Jonas, 40, is in the twilight of her career and might need to defy Father Time if she is to overcome her unbeaten opponent, who is 10 years younger.
Maybe, just maybe, Price is hungrier as well. “This is the journey I’m on now,” she says. “I want to go on, create greatness, and I believe I can become a legend of the sport, a multi-weight world champion.”
Still, she can’t help but bring it back to the Olympics, as though anything else she achieves is a bonus. In Price’s mind, the most important fight of all was won four years ago. Her eight-year-old self would agree.
“Obviously I’m very proud of my world title, but… you listen to Oleksandr Usyk and [Vasiliy] Lomachenko, they understand what it is to win an Olympic gold medal,” Price says, referencing two of this generation’s greatest amateur and professional fighters. “I [feel] the same. I’m not saying world championships are not hard to win, but you’ve got to be special to win an Olympic gold medal.”
Natasha Jonas vs Lauren Price is presented by BOXXER, live on Sky Sports on Friday 7 March, as part of an all-women’s event at the Royal Albert Hall.
