Boxer Rosie Eccles has opened up about how she had to overcome a disapproving father and how she always dreamt of competing at the Olympics.

At 15 she adopted her then hobby of boxing. She bought her own moped in order to get to training.

She told the Telegraph: “I saved up and bought a moped, so I would go to bed in my clothes, wake up and sneak out the back door and ride to Newport to box, which was 40 minutes away.

“It was freezing. I’d box, ride back, go to sleep for 10 minutes and then get up and go to school. I was completely hooked. I did it for a good few months before I got caught.” 

Her father did not approve of her new sport venture. He noticed she was missing one morning and this led to Eccles being prevented from boxing for a while. This did not stop the athlete dreaming of the Olympics.

Now 23, Eccles said: “Since I was a kid, my goal was to go to the Olympics - I just never knew it would be boxing.

“When I was a kid in that boxercise class, I knew that’s what I wanted to do. It sounds cheesy, but it did genuinely feel that way.”

The World Boxing Championships this week could be Eccles' key to Tokyo. If she gets a win in Russia she will qualify for the 2020 Olympics.

Eccles added: “I’ve got to remain humble. The race isn’t over yet and if I rest on my laurels too much I’m going to get unstuck at these World Championships.”