Lewis Richardson one win away from Commonwealth medal after beating back trouble

From injury hell to Olympic knockbacks, Lewis Richardson insisted he embraces every step of the journey as the Colchester boxer moved to within one win of a Commonwealth Games medal.

Lesser individuals may have contemplated quitting as, after getting into the Team GB set-up, Richardson was diagnosed with three stress fractures in his lower back which sidelined him for most of 2018.

He rebounded to win an Olympic test event the next year and although defeat to world champion Oleksandr Khyzhniak ended his hopes of competing at Tokyo 2020, Richardson claimed his first major medal at the European Championship at the back end of May by collecting silver in the middleweight category.

Richardson’s progress to the quarter-finals in the 75kg category in Birmingham has been far from smooth. The England boxer overcame a standing eight-count against Wales’ Haaris Khan to record a unanimous points win while he was pushed to his limit before earning a split decision verdict over Uganda’s Yusuf Nkobeza.

Another win over Guernsey’s Billy Le Poullain on Wednesday will guarantee Richardson at least a bronze and the 25-year-old can look forward to another rousing reception at the NEC Area, where the decibel level steadily rose as a nip-and-tuck bout against Nkobeza progressed.

“It was brilliant atmosphere, probably the best I’ve ever boxed in,” he said. “These moments are what you train hard for and what you bounce back from those situations for.

“The highs wouldn’t be as high without the lows. If it was all just about the highs you wouldn’t appreciate these moments as much.

“I’ve got a strong mentality, I’m focused and driven and I was able to show that here. I’ve shown that on countless occasions in fights and outside the ring also.”

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