Promising fighter Kenny Ormond has packed up his life in Darwin and moved to Beaudesert to pursue his dream of being a professional boxer.
Ormond, 19, left a full-time job and his family and friends behind to join the ranks of professional fighter Dylan Biggs at Beaudesert Boxing Club.
Ormond won an Australian title aged 16 in Darwin with only 12 fights under his belt, but he has only had a handful of fights since then and no fights in about two years.
He will make his return to fighting when he contests the Queensland 2022 Elite State Titles at the Acacia Ridge Hotel on 23-25 September in the 67kg class.
Beaudesert Boxing Club’s Justin and Sharlyn O’Leary welcomed Ormond into their home when he arrived on 10 August and he got straight into training twice a day, six days a week with Biggs.
Ormond said he moved to Beaudesert for the opportunities.
“Boxing is very slow in Darwin right now and it’s hard to get fights, so I came down here to get more fights and better training,” he said.
“I’ve been around boxing my whole life, watching my big brother and others in my family do it when I was younger, and I started training when I was about 13.
“It means a lot to me – I just love the sport and I like the training; it keeps you fit.
“Being away from family for the first time just makes me want to push more.”
Coach O’Leary, who runs the respected Beaudesert Boxing Club at his family home, first saw Ormond’s talent when he took Kalob Gray to Darwin for a fight about four years ago.
“I think Kenny had only had 3 fights and Kalob was top in the country then and had maybe 30 fights, so to be competitive then you could see Kenny could fight,” he said.
He said Ormond’s dedication was clear and that Ormond planned, like Biggs, to get part time work in Beaudesert and spend the rest of the time training hard toward his goals.
“He’s just got a one-way ticket, left a full-time job, his massive family, all his friends and come down here knowing absolutely no-one, which shows he’s committed,” O’Leary said.
