Lucy strikes bronze in Commonwealth Games medal rush

Lucy Kings-Wheatley…bright future ahead. Pic: Team England

LUCY Kings-Wheatley – the boxer who gets ready for battle by listening to Frank Sinatra classics such as My Way – did it her way and bagged bronze in the Commonwealth Games.

Regrets? There’s precious few, although she would’ve liked a different coloured medal.

“I was aiming for a gold,” admitted the Acocks Green ABC boxer. The 23-year-old is, however, over the moon at capturing a medal at 60kg in such a prestigious competition and in only her second Team England outing. “It was amazing being round all the athletes, including Olympic gold medallists,” said the 23-year-old from Tyseley.

Her performance helped make Glasgow 2026 the country’s most successful Games in 40 years, with four golds, three silvers and three bronzes.

Lucy dominated her opening bout against Papua New Guinea’s Petronella Nokenoke, had a tougher struggle with Josefien Betist (Sierra Leone) in the quarters before facing Priya Ghanghas in the semis.

That proved a gripping, seesaw affair with the Indian boxer taking the first, Lucy pulling back in the second. Priya re-established the lead in the last with counters to take a unanimous decision.

“I felt the first was really close and went her way,” Lucy admitted. “I came back in the second and got that one.” She concedes Priya nicked the decisive session.

Lucy, from a kick-boxing background, has certainly taken the sport by storm since joining Acocks Green in 2022.

She won the first of two national titles in only her second bout. In 27 contests, she also won the Tri-Nations and captured a World Cup silver.

“I think my timing and accuracy are my biggest strengths as a boxer,” she said. “I keep the boxing neat and tidy, I find the accuracy for the bigger shots.”

The future looks bright for Lucy, who added: “I’m still deciding what to do. The qualifiers for the Olympics are coming up. I could have a look at the pros, see what offers are coming – I’m an open book at the moment.”