Beyond The Ropes: Terri Stuart

Beyond The Ropes: Terri Stuart

The life of Terri Stuart started in 1999 in a small ex-mining village called Dipton in County Durham. The 25-year-old has had a life in sports. A wide variety that included kickboxing before she found boxing and a career in the Army.

Stuart had a rural upbringing. “I lived with my mam, dad, and two sisters in a tiny pit village in the countryside where everyone knew everyone,” Stuart told me. “I was always playing out and exploring and had a happy childhood.”

Even from an early age, sports have been a constant. “I have always loved sport. During school, I would volunteer to play any sport possible, ranging from table tennis to athletics to rugby, and even in primary school, I played for the boys’ football team! I have always loved the competitiveness of sport.”

Like many, Stuart already had a background in combat sports before boxing came into her life. “I started off kickboxing originally at age 9,” Stuart told me. “When finishing sixth form, I decided that university wasn’t the best fit for me and discovered the opportunities that the Army provided through boxing, as well as being able to have a career and gain qualifications. I joined at 18 in 2018 and started boxing for the Army in 2021 after finishing my job requirements.”

Boxing has played a major role in the life of Terri Stuart over the last four years. Without it, something is missing. It gives her a varied range of emotions.

“As I’m sure, most would say there’s no feeling like getting your hand raised at the end of a bout,” Stuart says. “But for me personally, I love the feeling of working hard at something and seeing the rewards. Not necessarily just winning as sometimes it doesn’t go your way, but the development within yourself as a boxer, practicing a skill or working to improve your fitness and then seeing that coming on during sessions or in a bout performance.

“It truly gives me a sense of belonging and purpose in life. At this point, I have been involved in combat sports for over half my life now; however, there was a period of a couple of years, when I first joined the Army, where I wasn’t able to box and train properly, and I felt a change within myself. Boxing is my rock in life. It makes me feel driven and passionate, and whatever life throws at me, good or bad, I know I can always rely on it to lift my spirits.”

Stuart is now forty fights into her boxing career, but she still remembers her first fight.

“My first boxing fight was for the Army at the MTK Box Cup,” Stuart relayed to me. “I remember feeling nervous having transitioned over to boxing and not ever experiencing a fight without using my legs, and they had a rule change the year I joined (now retracted) which meant females over 10 bouts were classed as elite. But I was also excited to start a new chapter and mix it up with tough competition.”

Those forty-odd fights have brought much success and plaudits:

MTK Box Cup Gold medallist
NAC Elite Semi-finalist 2022 (Covid)
NAC Elite Semi-finalist 2022
Army Sport rising star of the year 2022
National Amateur Champion 2023
Royal Electrical and mechanical Engineers Sports person of the year 2023
Selected to represent England 2023
Haringey Box Cup Gold medalist 2023
Tri-nation silver medallist 2023
Zagreb boxing queen gold medallist 2023
Army boxing’s Boxers boxer 2023
Selected to represent England 2024
UK Armed Forces Champion 2024
Australia vs. British Army gold medalist 2024
Army Boxing Team captain 24/25 season

Her resume is already impressive, and it will undoubtedly only grow even stronger. But a few moments stand out. “One of the highlights of my career would be winning the NAC’s and gaining a place on England, being able to represent my country and box internationally. However, I could not go without mentioning becoming the Army Boxing team captain. Being a part of the Army boxing team makes me so proud. So, to be chosen as team captain and to be able to help and lead the other boxers means so much to me.”

Boxing gives Terri Stuart so much. But that side of her life runs alongside another. “My job role in the British Army is an aviation supervisor. I am responsible for the repair and maintenance of Army aircraft. I am based in Yeovilton, Somerset, where I enjoy working, exploring, and camping in the countryside. However, I have travelled all across the world with my job, which is also a passion of mine. I love all things to do with sport and will literally watch/give anything and everything a go, as well as the more chilled things in life such as reading and listening to music.”

Stuart is still very early in her boxing journey. But the ambitions are high.

“I would like to retain my spot as an England boxer for another season to be able to compete internationally as well as win the NAC’s again,” Stuart says of her short-term aims. “I have no aspirations to turn professional at any time soon. However, I would never say never. I would love to progress on to GB and see how far I can progress with the hope of competing at major international competitions.”