It is a decade since Nicole Clyde took her first tentative steps through the doors of Antrim Boxing Club, and she hasn't looked back since.
Ten years on she continues to work under the watchful eye of coach Eamon Gillen, and she continues hitting the heights.
On Saturday night Nicole landed her fifth Irish Elite title, and her first in the senior ranks, after beating Chloe Gabriel in the 52kg final at the National Stadium in Dublin.
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The 20-year-old says the daily grind and sacrifice over the years has been a tough schedule to handle, but nights like Saturday make it all worthwhile.
Nicole told Belfast Live: "I would train twice a day, sometimes three times. It is a big commitment and can be hard going.
"Trying to train and working in between takes it out of you. Some days I train in the morning before work, and then I am training in the evening again. You sometimes don't even have time to sit in the house and get something to eat.
"And you don't get many days off. I took the Sunday off after winning the Elites, but I was back in the club on Monday morning.
"I have momentum now so I have to keep going. There is no point resting on my laurels."
Nicole recalls her first visit to Antrim Boxing Club, after her brother Dean persuaded their father to take him to the gym.
She said: "My dad took my brother Dean down to the club to start with, and I pestered him to take me as well.
"He told me that girls didn't go to boxing gyms to put me off, but one night I went down with him and there was a girl training and I went mad. My dad told me for weeks that I couldn't go because there were no girls going to the club.
"So he had no excuses after that, and I was straight back to the club. There are a good few female members now who come and go. We could have a few in some nights, and other times it will just be me.
"I absolutely love it. I have always been into sport but boxing just took me and I got addicted to it."
Nicole chose boxing over football and hockey after playing different sports at her former school, Parkhall Integrated College.
She says she quickly became hooked on the fight game, and once she became immersed in the gym life there was no turning back.
"I played a bit of football at Parkhall. We won the Northern Ireland Indoor Football Championships a couple of years in a row," she said.
"I also played hockey for the school as well. So I enjoyed different sports.
"But after walking into Antrim Boxing Club, I knew which sport I wanted to follow. I would recommend boxing to anyone. See for the fitness alone, and giving you that confidence booster, it is brilliant.
"I wouldn't say I am the most confident person, but boxing definitely brought me out of my shell and I am more confident speaking to people. And it's all down to boxing.
"So anyone interested should give it a go, definitely.
"It also instills discipline into you. I took it into my school work and made sure I got good results to make sure I could go further. So if boxing doesn't work out then I have something else to fall back on.
"It is crucial to have something else, because for a lot of athletes in any sport, things might not work out.
"My mum always made sure I stayed in school and got the qualifications I needed before I took boxing completely seriously."
Nicole - who competed for Northern Ireland at last year's Commonwealth Games - hopes Saturday's Irish Elite win can be the springboard for further success in 2023.
She edged past Chloe Gabriel of Mulhuddart in a 3-2 split decision after admitting to a "slow start" at the National Stadium.
"It was a great win for me," she said.
"I knew going into the fight it would be hard. Chloe is a top operator and is one of the best in the country, so our preparation had to be spot on.
"I started the first round slowly, I always get into things in the second and third rounds. And I always finish the third round strong.
"It is always my best round. And as long as I win two of the three rounds then it's okay.
"I was a bit nervous when the decision was being read out. I thought I had won it handy enough, but then they said it was a 3-2 split decision and I just thought 'oh no, they can't take this away from me'.
"I was panicking, which makes the win even sweeter I suppose. I was so pleased to have things go my way.
"I remember looking over at my corner and seeing my coach Eamon just looking at me."
She added: "It is a great start to the year for me. It is a massive positive and hopefully we can carry it on throughout the rest of the year.
"That was my fifth Irish title, but my first as a senior elite. I have also won an Ulster Elite title that got me into last year's Commonwealth Games.
"I was also beaten in the Ulster final this year by Carly (McNaul) on a 3-2 split. I thought I had won that fight but I didn't dwell on it.
"I quickly moved on and got the win in the Irish Elites. Now we move on."
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