Boxing star who swapped building sites for the ring opens up on "gruesome" reality
Pat Brown, one of six British boxers aiming for gold at the Paris Olympics, spent time gardening and scaffolding before doubling down on his commitment to boxing
Pat Brown says an eye-opening stint on building sites across Manchester was the motivation for his assault on the Olympics.
The heavyweight contender spent two years scaffolding by day and sparring by night having previously worked as a gardener. But the physical toll was “so gruesome” it left him with a choice - double down on his commitment to boxing or say goodbye to his dream.
He chose the former and has been fast-tracked through the British podium system since 2022 while fighting out of Nigel Travis’ Moss Side Fire Station gym.
“Lifting tubes all day and boxing after work, that was quite difficult on the body,” he says. “But my goal was always boxing. I knew I’d get to the level required so these jobs were a bit of money to bide my time.
“With the scaffolding, I was around people trying to feed their families. That job made me realise a lot, it gave me more hunger to chase my boxing dream because I didn’t want to do scaffolding forever. To fast-track my way through has been surreal. It gives out a message to kids that anything is possible.”
Being added to the podium category has enabled him to access National Lottery funding, which means he can concentrate solely on what happens in the ring.
But the 24-year-old is also grateful to his dad Mike, who has spent 25 years coaching at the Sale West club where Ricky Hatton first trained, for providing “a hyperactive kid” with the platform to “kill a bit of energy at the gym. Then I just ended up taking to it.”
Now the aggressive, front-foot Brown believes he can go all the way in Paris. “I’ll fight anyone,” he adds. “And I believe that on my day and if I stick to my plan I can go through anyone.”
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