Watching the super-heavyweight boxers during my lunch break at McDonald’s, I was inspired to train for Rio and be a world champion. Suddenly my life began
In the summer of 2012, it felt as if everyone in London was watching the Olympics. It was the same for us, on our lunch break in the McDonald’s staff room. I felt as if I was on the journey with those athletes – every punch that was thrown, every stride on the sprint. I loved watching Usain Bolt and the British boxers Anthony Joshua and Nicola Adams.
I had been working at McDonald’s since I left sixth form, in the branch at Victoria station. Sometimes, I’d see people I’d gone to school with who were on their way to university, or starting their careers. I was taking a year out and I didn’t really have a plan for my life. It was starting to feel like I’d been left behind.
