A gym in Liverpool will have the only boxing representative of Merseyside and Cheshire at the 2022 Commonwealth Games as Jamie Devine steps foot into the ring representing the Isle of Man.
The 25-year-old has been drawn to fight Ghanaian boxer Abdul Omar in the 63.5kg and under weight category at the competition, held in Birmingham. Liverpool has a rich history at the Commonwealth Games with Peter McGrail reigning victorious in Australia in 2018 where he beat Samuel Yaw Addo.
Devine first walked into the No Limits Gym in Liverpool 12 to 18 months ago as he looked to end a seven-year hiatus away from the ring. The Douglas-born fighter has been successful in his amateur career winning a number of Box Cups and reached the semi-finals of the National ABAs which landed him qualification to this summer's Games.
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One of the coaches at No Limits, Danny Withington, told the Liverpool ECHO: "All his hard work has paid off, he’s given us everything we’ve asked for over the last eight weeks and he’s been a welcome addition to the gym.
"An ex-boxer of ours was working with him and said he wanted to get into some training so he was advised to come down and has been here since," he added on how he started at the gym, based off Jamaica Street.
Devine fights at 7:30pm on Friday, July 29. Viewers will be able to catch the Isle of Man fighter, boxing out of Liverpool on BBC One.
Following his inclusion in Mann's Commonwealth Games squad, Devine posted on social media: "I am happy to finally announce that I have been selected to represent the Isle of Man in the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. I never thought that I would get this opportunity when I walked back into the gym 10 months ago after 7 years out of the ring and away from the sport.
"In the last 10 months I’ve fallen back in love with boxing, dedicating myself to the boxing gym and changing my lifestyle to succeed in the sport.
"Boxing has always been my passion and has been on my mind everyday, ever since I walked into the gym when I was 11 years old. 53 bouts later, I’ve finally got the opportunity to compete in one of the worlds largest tournaments, alongside some of the best athletes in the world and it is an honour to represent the Isle of Man.
"The biggest challenge for me is working on a building site for 10+ hours a day whilst finding the time to train 6x a week. As this is a once in a lifetime opportunity, over the next few months I’ll be fully committing myself to boxing and will be completing an 8 week training camp to ensure that I compete to the best of my ability whilst representing the Isle of Man.
"Most importantly I want to say thank you to @nolimits gym, who I represent in Liverpool and who will continue to train me throughout this process. I honestly would of never of got to this level today without their support and coaching over the last 10 months.
"I also want to thank Manx ABC for all the support that they’ve shown me over the years and their head coach, Peter Roberts who dedicates his whole life to Isle of Man boxing scene, without him none of this would be possible. Busy few months ahead, but I’m itching to get started."
