A grieving father has turned to boxing to help him cope with the loss of his wife to cancer. Khurum Jabbar, 34, from Irvine, Ayrshire, took up the sport competitively after his wife Shahzia died in July. She had been diagnosed with melanoma the previous October. The 36-year-old mother left behind three young children aged two, five and seven.
New wave of white-collar boxers
Khurum, who had never fought before, is part of a growing number of older men taking up boxing for the first time. Known as white-collar boxers, these newcomers compete in supervised bouts after weeks of training. Khurum has already fought twice in the ring, with more bouts planned.
His most recent fight was last month at Glasgow's River Palace banqueting hall, where he drew with his opponent. Khurum, who runs a takeaway business, said his late wife fully supported his decision to box. He took up the sport in November, shortly after Shahzia's diagnosis.
Wife's final words
Khurum said his wife was supportive to the end. He added: "She told me just to be careful and don't get hurt. She was a very strong woman."
White-collar boxing has been described as one of the fastest-growing contact sports in the world. Beginners with no prior fight experience — typically office workers, executives, lawyers, bankers and businessmen — train for several weeks and then compete in a three-round bout held under normal boxing rules.
Raising funds and fighting grief
Khurum's first fight was in January, which he won and also raised over £3,000 for Cancer Research. He said: "Shahzia's cancer was a rare, aggressive type and she was given no more than a year to live.
"We were desperate to find something that would keep her alive for longer and scoured the world for a possible cure. We tried immunotherapy, without success.
"Then we were given great hope when Shahzia was accepted for a trial of a new drug in a London hospital. Then, one day, out of the blue as she was preparing to go to London, they phoned and said they'd pulled the plug on the trial."
Khurum added: "I started looking abroad and found a possible treatment in Turkey. I spoke to the hospital in Istanbul and they offered to examine her suitability.
"In April we went there for a biopsy. At the time we were told that the treatment won't work for between eight and ten per cent of patients. We felt confident the odds were in her favour.
"Alas, Shahzia was in that small group who couldn't benefit from the treatment. She was in that eight and ten percent. After that setback she lost heart and went downhill."
Boxing as a lifeline
Khurum admits that boxing is helping to ease the pain. He said: "In the gym I need to focus on the fight and there are always other people there to keep my spirits up.
"They've been like a family to me. Going into boxing has helped me. It has released a lot of emotions. It was the best thing I could have done to keep me focussed and not go down a bad road."
The white-collar boxing nights are arranged by brothers Shehbaz and Raz Parnez through their Glasgow-based RT Elite Promotions. Raz said the fights could even be a pathway to a professional career for someone like Khurum.
He added: "It gives people who have never boxed before the chance to test themselves in the ring in front of a large crowd. For Khurum it has kept his mind busy, occupied and in a better place. It is a hard thing he is dealing with as well as three young children to look after."
