Calum French turned professional five years ago after missing out on the Olympics, but his trials and tribulations were only just beginning. The 31-year-old had been a promising amateur on course for the Games until his weight category was removed. He instead turned professional, but has faced a series of setbacks.
Shoulder injury and setbacks
French fractured his right shoulder in camp, but was told to continue. He said: "I fractured my right shoulder in camp but because I had just been out for a long stint after surgery on my left shoulder, my coach told me they would think I was a bit of a messer if I started complaining. He said I had to go through with the fight with a knackered right shoulder."
"I went through the full training camp with one arm, then fought with one arm, and lost. The fracture was in the front of my shoulder, so every time I missed a shot, there would be no bone to stop the shoulder from coming out. So every time I missed a shot, my shoulder would come out."
No coach, no promoter, no manager
In the operation, they took a bit of bone from his collarbone and fused it into the front of his shoulder to stop it dislocating. But by the time he had surgery, his contract with Matchroom had run out, so he had no promoter; his contract with his manager had run out, so he had no manager, and his coach had gone to jail, so he had no coach.
French said: "I was sitting there thinking, is this it? Is this the end of the road? But I believe I'm meant for something in this sport. I've been doing this for 22 years now and I felt like I didn't want all that time I'd put in, and all that dedication and years of discipline to go to waste."
Rebuilding with new team
At a career crossroads, French turned to Olympic coach Rob McCracken and relocated to his base in Sheffield. He spent six months completing his rehab alongside the stars of the future. Now trained by former world champion Anthony Crolla, French returned to the ring last year and tonight takes his next baby step to where he believes he belongs.
"I could have sat there and sulked about it and felt sorry for myself," he added. "Or I could have just got back on the horse, and that's what I did. I'm just hitting my prime now and I've always been a bit of a late bloomer. I haven't had many hard fights and there's not many miles on the clock. I'm just getting started and I believe my best years are yet to come."
