Welsh professional boxer Lauren Price (right) is set to take on undisputed world champion Jessica McCaskill. (left)
Almost three years on from winning a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics, Welsh professional boxer Lauren Price has set her sights on undisputed world champion Jessica McCaskill, for the WBA, IBO and Ring Magazine welterweight titles.
Taking on someone she calls a “great opponent” in Cardiff fulfils a dream for Price – and she’s well-prepared for the challenge she tells PinkNews.
Price and McCaskill’s bout will take place at the Utilita Arena on 11 May, and Price, who is “very proud of being Welsh”, says it has been her “main dream” to fight on home soil for about for 10 years.
“I’m going to have my Welsh army behind me and it’s something I’ve always dreamt of: walking out and having my own crowd.”
But she’s aware she’s not “taking an easy route and fighting for a vacant belt” because she’s up against a “legitimate champion”. American McCaskill holds the WBA and WBC welterweight titles.
“She’s a very respectful girl,” Price says. “I respect her and what she’s done for women’s boxing. She’s a great opponent. But when the bell goes on 11 May, respect goes out the window and we will be fighting [for those] belts.”
The fight will be a huge night for boxing, offering Price the chance to become the first female world champion from Wales. But her opponent is hoping to bring the home crowd firmly back down the Earth.
McCaskill, who is from Chicago, said: “I’m here to steal all her fans. I’m going to show her what it takes to be a champion and the belts will be coming back to America with me.”
Talking about being part of the LGBTQ+ community, Price, who is a lesbian, says: “I came out as gay when I was 13. I don’t think that should come into it. Whether it’s your sexuality or race, I believe everyone should be accepted.
“I don’t take on anyone’s opinion. You are who you are and the world is full of different people. You don’t always have to be friends with people but I believe you don’t have to be horrible to [them].”
Price has been open about her coming out experience, and in Sky Sports documentary The Lucky One, she talked about feeling “quite lucky”.
And speaking to Outsports, she said: “I was in the football setup – even though I was young, I played in an older age group – and a lot of my friends were already out, so I felt I had that support. But I know not everyone’s experience is like that.”
Research by Stonewall, published last year, revealed that Britons are increasingly embracing LGBTQ+ people in their sports communities.
Price recalls that at the Tokyo Olympic Games – where she beat China’s Li Qian in the final to become the first Welsh boxer to win an Olympic gold medal – there was a lot of support for inclusion.
“The Olympics is the pinnacle of the sport and it was a dream of mine since the age of eight,” she says.
After the upcoming title fight in May, Price, who was appointed MBE in the 2022 New Year Honours List, plans to have Sunday dinner with her grandmother and partner, fellow boxer Karriss Artingstall.
In 2022, Price and Artingstall, who are also sparring partners, spoke to PinkNews about their gruelling training sessions ahead of fighting on the same card.
Lauren Price challenges Jessica McCaskill for the Unified WBA, IBO and Ring magazine world titles on Saturday, 11 May, at the Utilita Arena, Cardiff. Tickets are available now from boxxer.com.