Lauren Price

Lauren Louise Price MBE (born 25 June 1994[2]) is a Welsh professional boxer, former amateur boxer and former kickboxer and footballer.[3] She has held the British welterweight title since May 2023, and is the first female to hold the title. While representing Wales in the amateur sport she won a bronze medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, becoming the first Welsh woman to win a Commonwealth Games boxing medal. Four years later she surpassed this achievement by winning gold at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, followed by a gold at the 2019 World Championships. While representing Great Britain, she won gold medals at the 2019 European Games and 2020 Summer Olympics.

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Lauren Price
MBE
Statistics
Weight classMiddleweight
Height5 ft 5+1⁄2 in (166 cm)[1]
Born (1994-06-25) 25 June 1994
Newport, Wales
StanceSouthpaw[2]
Medal record
Women's amateur boxing
Representing  Great Britain
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place2020 TokyoMiddleweight
European Games
Gold medal – first place2019 MinskMiddleweight
Representing  Wales
World Championships
Gold medal – first place2019 Ulan-UdeMiddleweight
Bronze medal – third place2018 New DelhiMiddleweight
European Championships
Bronze medal – third place2011 RotterdamWelterweight
Bronze medal – third place2016 SofiaMiddleweight
Bronze medal – third place2018 SofiaMiddleweight
Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place2018 Gold CoastMiddleweight
Bronze medal – third place2014 GlasgowMiddleweight
Lauren Price
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2012–2014 Cardiff City F.C.
International career
2011 Wales U17 3 (0)
2011–2013 Wales U19 12 (2)
2012–2013 Wales 2 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

As an amateur, Price was simultaneously the holder of the Olympic Games, World, European Games and Commonwealth Games titles at Middleweight through 2019 and 2021, with the European championship (the EBA continental championship distinct from the European Games) being the only major prize eluding her, despite winning three bronze medals

Price also played football for several years with Cardiff City, winning the inaugural season of the Welsh Premier Women's Football League in 2013. Having captained Wales at under-19 level, she made her senior debut in 2012. She gave up playing football in 2014 to focus on her boxing career.

Early life

Price was born in Newport, Wales, but grew up in Ystrad Mynach, Caerphilly, where she was brought up by her grandparents.[4][5] She attended Heolddu Comprehensive School in Bargoed.[6] She showed a keen interest in several sports, taking up football, netball and kickboxing at the age of ten, the last after encouragement from her grandfather.[7] As a kickboxer, Price won a silver medal at a World Championships event in Athens in 2007 at the age of 13, competing against opponents twice her age,[6] and became the youngest ever competitor in the British Championships.[8] She went on to become a four-time world champion and six-time European champion in the sport and later competed in Taekwondo.[5]

Football career

Club

Price was spotted by scouts from Cardiff City. She credited her kickboxing training with helping improve her play, commenting "I could kick a ball a lot further than any of my team mates" and noting that "I might have had a higher pain threshold than everyone else."[7] She was part of the club's under-16 side that won the Welsh section of the Tesco Cup in 2010, being named player of the tournament.[9][10]

She progressed to the senior team at Cardiff and won the inaugural Welsh Premier Women's Football League title during the 2012–13 season after their decisive 5–2 victory over Wrexham in the final game of the season.[11] Price was named the club's Player of the Year during their title winning season.[12] Price was also named the Football Association of Wales (FAW) Club Player of the Year.[13] In 2014, Price stepped away from football to concentrate on her boxing career ahead of the 2014 Commonwealth Games.[5]

International

Having captained Wales at under-19 level,[14] Price made her debut for the Wales senior side on 16 June 2012, replacing Sarah Wiltshire in the closing stages of a 1–0 victory over Republic of Ireland.[15]

Boxing career

Price initially took up boxing as a teenager but became further involved in the sport after watching British fighter Nicola Adams win gold at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.[5][7] After competing in a single amateur bout at 17, she entered the Women's European and Youth World Championships where she claimed a bronze medal.[5] At the 2014 Commonwealth Games, she became the first Welsh woman to claim a boxing medal in the Commonwealth Games after defeating Kaye Scott in the quarter-finals of the women's middleweight division to guarantee at least a bronze.[16][17] She met Ariane Fortin in the semi-final but suffered a split decision defeat.[18][19]

She claimed another bronze medal at the 2016 Women's European Amateur Boxing Championships. In 2018, she won gold at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, after defeating Caitlin Parker via split decision in the final of the event.[20] In May 2019, Price was selected to compete at the 2019 European Games in Minsk, Belarus,[21] winning the gold medal.[22]

Price competed in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo,[23] beating Dutch boxer Nouchka Fontijn in the middleweight semi-final. She went on to win gold against Li Qian of China, making her the first Welsh boxer of any gender to win an Olympic gold medal.[24][25] Price was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2022 New Year Honours for services to boxing.[26][27]

Personal life

Price studied a Foundation Degree in Football Coaching and Development at the University of South Wales.[28] Her partner is featherweight boxer and fellow southpaw Karriss Artingstall.[29][30]

Professional boxing record
4 fights 4 wins 0 losses
By knockout 1 0
By decision 3 0
No. Result Record Opponent Type Round, time Date Location Notes
4 Win 4–0 Kirstie Bavington UD 10 6 May 2023 Resorts World Arena, Birmingham, England Won inaugural British female welterweight title
3 Win 3–0 Naomi Mannes UD 8 11 Mar 2023 Zénith Paris, Paris, France
2 Win 2–0 Timea Belik TKO 4 (6), 1:18 15 Oct 2022 The O2 Arena, London, England
1 Win 1–0 Valgerdur Gudstensdottir PTS 6 11 Jun 2022 The SSE Arena Wembley, London, England

Honours

Cardiff City

Individual

  • FAW Club Player of the Year: 2013[13]

References
  1. "BoxRec: Lauren Price". BoxRec. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
  2. "Boxing PRICE Lauren - Tokyo 2020 Olympics". Olympics. Archived from the original on 8 August 2021. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
  3. Penman, Andrew (23 November 2018). "Gwent's Lauren Price wins world boxing bronze in India". South Wales Argus. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  4. "Price - the girl who reached for the moon". BBC Sport.
  5. Webb, Alex (28 July 2014). "Glasgow 2014: Footballer Lauren Price swaps boots for boxing". BBC Sport. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
  6. "Kickboxing: Lauren is a hit with teachers". WalesOnline. Media Wales. 28 June 2007. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  7. White, Jim (15 November 2018). "How Olympic hero Nicola Adams inspired next generation of British women boxers – 'She is the person who showed us all it's possible'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  8. "Lauren's a Sporting Role Model". WalesOnline. Media Wales. 22 November 2007. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  9. "Lauren Price is right for final flourish". The Express. 22 April 2010. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  10. Phillips, Terry (21 April 2010). "Joe Ledley is guest of honour at Tesco Cup finals". WalesOnline. Media Wales. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  11. "Cardiff City Women win Womens Welsh Premier League title". BBC Sport. 19 May 2013. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  12. "Lauren Price Scoops Player of the Season". cardifflocalguide.co.uk. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  13. "Bale wins FAW Player of the Year". Sgorio. 8 June 2013. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  14. "Congratulations to Lauren Price". Football Association of Wales. 13 May 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  15. Lauren Price at Soccerway. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  16. Griffiths, Gareth (30 July 2014). "Commonwealth Games 2014: Women's boxer Lauren Price creates history as Team Wales celebrate record haul in Glasgow". WalesOnline. Media Wales. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  17. "Boxing medallist's rise to history". BBC Sport. UK. 1 January 2015. Retrieved 30 June 2019.
  18. "Glasgow 2014: Wales' Lauren Price proud after historic bronze". BBC Sport. 2 August 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  19. Penman, Andrew (14 August 2014). "Wales' women inspired by Bargoed boxing hero Lauren Price". South Wales Argus. UK. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
  20. "Lauren Price". GB Boxing. 21 September 2017. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  21. "Team GB squad announcement for the European Games". Team GB. 21 May 2019. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
  22. Williams, David (30 June 2019). "Olympic hopeful Lauren Price strikes European Games gold in Minsk". South Wales Argus. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  23. "11 boxers named for Tokyo Games". www.teamgb.com. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
  24. "Lauren Price becomes first Welsh fighter to win Olympic gold as she triumphs in middleweight final | The Scotsman".
  25. "Dominant Lauren Price produces accomplished display to win boxing gold - Team GB's 22nd in Tokyo". Telegraph. 8 August 2021.
  26. "No. 63571". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 January 2022. p. N23.
  27. "New Year Honours 2022: Jason Kenny receives a knighthood and Laura Kenny made a dame". BBC Sport. 31 December 2021.
  28. "Price Makes Commonwealth Games History". University of South Wales. 4 August 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  29. "Tokyo Olympics: Lauren Price targets more Olympic success after boxing gold". BBC. 9 August 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2021.
  30. "These two Olympic medalists confirmed their love with this cute, casual photo". 19 August 2021.
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