Alice Pumphrey: “I want an Olympic gold medal. That’s the dream now. I then want to turn professional and be undisputed at four different weights. That’s the end goal. I just can’t wait for what the future holds.”

Alice Pumphrey: “I want an Olympic gold medal. That’s the dream now. I then want to turn professional and be undisputed at four different weights. That’s the end goal. I just can’t wait for what the future holds.”

Alice Pumphrey is only 18. But she is no ordinary teenager. Impressive beyond her years. She is already a world champion. You sense that is only the beginning. Pumphrey is expected to go a long way in the sport. In truth, she already has. But the young blue-chip prospect expects even more of herself.

Pumphrey, who trains at the Purge Academy Gym, recently made the trip over to Colorado and came home with a gold medal in the World Boxing U19 Championships.

“It just feels unreal,” Pumphrey told me over Zoom. “Ever since I started boxing, the end goal has always been to be a world champion. That was what I always dreamed of. So, to now be a world champion, it’s not really sunk in yet.”

There is a confidence about the young fighter that is seriously impressive. Her recent form and overall resume tell us that confidence is far from misplaced.

“I never ever think what if I don’t win,” Pumphrey says of her mindset going into a fight. “My thinking is, if I don’t think I can get gold, then I shouldn’t be in that ring. I always go in there to win.”

Pumphrey has some record already.

“I’ve had forty-three fights, and I haven’t lost in three years. I have never lost boxing for my club or when I have boxed for England. I have won three National titles, as well as the world title. I have got two GB titles. Three European gold medals.”

The Batley-based fighter has a far longer list of achievements. But it should have been even more fights and a little more silverware added to that record.

“I should have had a lot more fights,” Pumphrey says. “But a lot of girls have pulled out. There have been times when I have travelled four or five hours down to places, and they have pulled out when I have got there. At the start of the year, I was supposed to box a former European champion at the Nationals. I got down there and was ready to weigh in for the final, and she pulled out.”

The entry into boxing came at an early age. A desire to try something different on her days off from another sport.

“I started boxing when I was twelve,” Pumphrey told me. “I was playing football for Manchester United. I said to my dad, “I was bored on the nights that I didn’t play football, and I said I wanted to do boxing for some extra fitness.” I was pestering him for a couple of months, and eventually, he took me to a boxing gym. I did two sessions, and I told my dad that I didn’t want to play football anymore. My dad spoke to my boxing coach at the time, and he told my dad that he could make me a world champion. I finished that season at Man United and then started boxing full-time. Within the first nine months of my starting boxing, I had won the European title. My dad then pulled me out of school so I could concentrate on boxing full-time.”

Watching their child fight can be full of anxiety and more for many a parent, but for the father of Pumphrey, the experience is something a little different.

“My dad brought me up to be a tough cookie. He loves watching me box. He’s never missed a fight. He’s been to every single one of them no matter where it is in the world.”

At 18, Alice Pumphrey has her entire boxing life ahead of her. The impressive start could potentially morph into something special. There is a temptation to turn professional right now, but as long as boxing remains an Olympic sport, Pumphrey is chasing glory on the Olympic stage.

“I’ve had an offer from GB Boxing to join their team,” Pumphrey relayed to FightPost. “I have also had offers from a couple of promoters to turn professional. So I am just weighing up the best route to go. But it would be unreal to win an Olympic gold and then turn professional after that. I always dreamed of winning world titles, but now that I have been to America to win the world title and having the experience over there, and now I am imagining going over there to win an Olympic gold medal.

“I want an Olympic gold medal. That’s the dream now. I then want to turn professional and be undisputed at four different weights. That’s the end goal. I just can’t wait for what the future holds.”

Those lingering doubts about boxing staying as an Olympic sport will influence her immediate decision-making. But whether Pumphrey stays in the unpaid ranks or not, her future looks to have a golden look about it.

Pumphrey draws inspiration from the likes of Mike Tyson, Katie Taylor, and Amanda Serrano

“What they have done for women’s boxing is unreal,” Pumphrey says of Taylor and Serrano, who have given so much for their side of the sport. Alice Pumphrey intends to follow in their footsteps.

The sport has given Pumphrey so much. You feel it gives her entire identity.

“When you are in that ring, it’s all on you. It gives you a buzz like nothing else. There is nothing else I would rather do than stand toe-to-toe with someone. It’s just a feeling that you can’t describe. I feed off the pressure.”