'Superhuman': Olympic boxing champ Price had 'grit' from young age, family says

The family of Olympic gold medallist Lauren Price say they always knew she was destined for greatness.

“I just knew she was going to achieve something massive,” her grandmother says, “because she’s just that way inclined.”

Linda Jones, 68, says the athlete’s “grit and determination” was evident from a young age and extends to everything she does – not just a single sport.

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“To me, she’s some sort of superhuman,” she tells Sky News.

Price made Olympic history on Sunday morning when she became the first Welsh fighter to win gold in boxing, defeating China’s Li Qian in the women’s middleweight final.

It is the latest victory in an illustrious career for the athlete, who was previously a four-time youth kickboxing champion and has played 52 games for the Welsh football team.

Her aunt Alison Morris, 44, says Price has always excelled in every sport she has taken up.

She never expected her niece to win gold at the Olympics but it did not come as a surprise either.

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“She just always wanted to be the very best she could be at whatever she did,” Ms Morris says.

When Price earned her place on the Olympic podium, she says she was “over the moon”.

She phoned Price’s grandmother, who cried when she heard the news.

“She’s worked so hard for this,” Ms Jones says.

Despite being the Olympian’s biggest fan, she has never watched a single one of Price’s fights live because she gets too nervous.

“I can’t,” she says. “It makes me too ill – I’m physically sick.”

She says her stomach “was in knots” while she knew the final was going on.

Price was raised by her grandparents from just three days old because her own parents were unable to look after her – and credits them with helping her achieve her dreams.

When the athlete was in the ring at the Olympics, she looked and pointed skywards, a gesture her aunt says was a tribute to her grandfather – who died last year after battling dementia.

Her grandmother is still a huge source of support and sent her inspirational text messages throughout the Games.

Ms Jones says she can sometimes spend three hours composing her texts as she frets about whether what she is writing might be “too emotional”.

She explains: “I usually say, ‘Dream big. Don’t forget: now you’re on the moon. It’s time to land. And all this is up to you, just make sure it’s a soft landing.’ And we’re always with her. We’re with her in our hearts.”

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