Former Narrabri boxer Shannan Davey is about to make his career highlight as he prepares to step into the ring at the Paris Olympics at the end of this month.
“To qualify to compete at Olympic Games is just an amazing feeling,” said Davey.
“It’s hard to explain the emotions, but I feel like it’s not going to sink in until I’m there with the tracksuit on, at the opening ceremony and then sure it’ll hit me.”
The 24-year-old has been training three days a week in Brisbane in the lead up to the games, before heading to Germany earlier this week for a pre-games camp, and putting the final touches on their game plan.
“Its full on and we’re all pretty tired and mentally drained at the moment, but we’ re about to start tapering off so we can start peaking for the games.”
“Everything’s looking fantastic at the moment.”
Davey will join the Australian team at the opening and closing ceremonies, appreciative of the unique position being on the boxing team provides.
“Boxing is one of the lucky sports because not everyone gets to stay the whole time, you get sent home two days after your event, but with boxing because it’s a knockout tournament and it goes over the whole two weeks, we get to do the full experience,”
“Obviously our goal is to make the final and hit them gold medals.”
Davey’s career so far boasts 67 fights with 51 wins. will complete in the Light Middleweight Men’s Division as he looks to launch his career to the next level.
Davey started boxing at 12 years old, and after figuring out he was pretty good, his dream of representing his country at the Olympics grew.
“You can say I was a bit of a ratbag of a kid,” said Davey.
“I was a bit of a hyperactive kid, I had a lot of energy and I used to get in a bit of trouble here and there, like fighting in school and whatnot, but I figured boxing and fighting’s always popped up for my life as a young age and I was named after a boxer funny enough- Shannon Taylor, an Australian boxer,”
“My mum watched him on TV when she was pregnant with me and she’s like, I’m going name my boy after him and then funny enough, I become a boxer and I’m going through the Olympic games.”
Davey first stepped into the Narrabri gym following his brother, giving him the option to pick up another slice of pizza or pick up the gloves.
“I put the pizza down, picked up the gloves and never looked back, and just fell in love with the sport and lost heaps of weight, got into shape and now I’m 11 years deep into my career.”
And now he is looking to go pro.
“Olympics is the pinnacle right now, and getting a medal for my country, and then obviously I would love to go professional and become a professional world champion and make a living from this sport.”
Davey still makes his way back home to Narrabri to visit his family, after moving to Bundaberg in Queensland almost three years ago, and then down to Brisbane, so that he could progress in the sport.
“I’ve got a lot of family- my mum, dad and brother, and friends there, so I go back to see them and my sponsors like Lee Parish Farming, Specialised Civil, Pheonix two390 fitness and some good.”
“I’ve been so busy for the last couple of years you know trying to qualify and get to this point so but after the Olympics I’m definitely going to go back and catch up and maybe do some motivational speech at schools and give back.”
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