Making an impact: Paving the way for a generation of female boxers

Ranked among the world’s top female boxing champions, Cathy Brown exemplifies how the sport can be a lifeline for women facing abuse and abandonment.

We meet at Third Space Soho, one of London’s most prestigious fitness spaces, where the former European boxing champion now coaches as a personal trainer and boxing coach.

While the spotlight often shines on the world’s top winners, those who place third can go unrecognised, especially in 1990s women’s boxing. The 53-year-old battled her way to European and English boxing titles, and a number 3 world ranking, before neck and wrist injuries brought an end to her career.

During that time, female boxers lacked the support it has today, particularly within Cathy’s Catholic family, where she faced rejection and no support for her boxing dreams.

She says: “I was adopted and in an orphanage for a while. So I grew up with really low confidence and self-esteem. I was in this place of not belonging anywhere.

“I felt really angry as a child. Back in the 70s, we didn’t have much emotional intelligence. We were encouraged to push things under the carpet and not talk about our feelings.

“With my adoptive family, they didn’t really want to speak about anything that would look like a weakness. So I kind of suffered.”

Knockdowns

This wasn’t her only encounter with rejection. Cathy was abandoned after being adopted, spurned by her birth family, and endured domestic abuse from a former partner at a young age.

Cathy said: “When I was in my teenage years, I met an older guy who gave me lots of attention. So then all of a sudden, I felt like I was worthy. But then he played on that a lot.

“I was abused badly for a two year period. At one point he tried to kill me.

“So I ended the relationship and decided to study photography away from home. When I left home, I was still quite angry, because obviously, I’ve been through all this abuse that I couldn’t share with anyone because I was embarrassed.”

Fighting back

Such experiences might have crushed many, but boxing gave Cathy the determination to excel in life.
“Everyone used to tell me I was a little bit aggressive. I called it assertiveness. Then someone introduced me to kickboxing.

“Within the first time I went there, this magic thing happened where I just felt I belong somewhere,” she said.

“I had this place where when I’m punching pads, releasing all this emotion and feeling like you’re in control. I was like an escapism.”

While kickboxing in the 90s, Cathy worked as a forensic police photographer. Then in 1997 she was approached to turn pro in female boxing.

“I’ve gotten to the stage where my adoptive family didn’t want to speak to me because I’ve gotten a pro boxing licence,” she said.

“They were embarrassed saying women shouldn’t be allowed to box. That I had brought shame on a Catholic family but I had found something I loved.

“It was this whole big sexism fight to boxing. I used to get laughed at a lot but it gave me ammo. I thought, I’ll show you I can do it and that I am worthy.”

She now coaches at Third Space’s flagship Soho club, a luxury gym which has invested in a world-class boxing ring.

Here, Cathy has been pivotal in establishing women’s only boxing classes, creating a safe space for women to explore the physical and mental benefits of boxing. Within her role at the club, Cathy has mentored numerous women, including those who are blind, chronically anxious, or neurodivergent.

“I work with people with ADHD, dyspraxia and depression. It helps as it gives you just that sense of power,” Cathy said. Boxing is the best form of mental health resource that I’ve ever found.”

Outside the ring

Cathy is championed not only for her accomplishments in the ring but also for her dedication to assisting young women facing their own struggles.

In 2019 Cathy went to work in Iraq, to help young girls who’ve been sexually abused by ISIS, gang raped and other horrendous atrocities.

She said: “So now I run a charity called Head Guard where we teach people how to approach boxing. We flew to Iraq and worked with these girls in the camps.

“And we trained women to become boxing coaches. We went to Nepal last year, with a lot of girls who’ve been sexually trafficked, and essentially abused and used as sex slaves and helped them and worked with local charities. So that gives me absolute fulfilment.”

To find out more about boxing at Third Space, here.

Find out more about Head Guard, here