A Burscough mum burst into tears in the middle of Liverpool ONE after receiving a call from her martial arts-loving son.
Kelly Ann Tobin, 43, was shopping in Liverpool city centre when her 16-year-old son Josh called to tell her he'd achieved a major step towards his dream of becoming a Taekwondo champion.
The mum of two was overcome with emotion when she heard the words that came from the mouth of the head boy at St Bede's Catholic High School in Ormskirk.
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Kelly Ann, a choreographer, said: "It was just pure elation and relief."
She added: "He works so hard, and it has been his whole life.
"Now he's able to go and live his dreams and achieve something that literally has been the full reason for him being."
Ten years ago, Kelly Ann took Josh to his first Taekwondo class to help the shy six-year-old build confidence.
Now he's moved to Manchester after being accepted onto the World Class Olympic Taekwondo Programme, which will allow him to train full-time.
Josh was relieved when he got an email informing him of his spot on the programme, and he immediately found a cubicle where he could call his mum to share the news.
The teenager was spotted at the British Taekwondo National Championships in 2019 by GB Taekwondo bosses who have since nurtured his talents.
Kelly Ann said: "We actually didn't believe it because it's the head of GB Taekwondo and he's got all these Olympians he's looking after?
"You kind of think 'No, that must be wrong, it must have been somebody else that spotted him'."
Now Josh gets to follow in the footsteps of his idols like Bradly Sinden, who became GB’s first male World Champion when he won the 2019 World Championships.
He'll even get to train alongside Liverpool-born Bianca Walkden, the first GB Taekwondo athlete to win three World Championships.
The excitement of Taekwondo drivers Josh to seek improvement in each session, working towards his goal of competing in the Olympic Games.
His moment on the podium when he wins is a real high point, according to Josh.
He said: "It's that buzz of the national anthem being played and feeling like all that hard work is all worth it and pays off."
This week was the first week of Josh splitting his time between Manchester for training and Burscough for GCSEs.
Soon Josh will be living and training there full-time.
He already trains for two hours every day, with sessions in both the morning and the evening.
Kelly Ann said: "It's the last thing he thinks about at night and the first thing he wakes up thinking about.
"For us as parents, myself and my husband, we've never once had to tell him to train. We've never once had to try and coax him.
"He'll be up at ridiculous o'clock in the morning, and he's training"
It's taken a great deal of personal sacrifice, spending his 16th birthday training, and skipping family holidays to compete in France, Croatia and Taiwan.
But Josh's efforts are paying off..
Kelly Ann said: "Not every child will get to an elite level, but what the sport has given Josh, is perseverance, integrity, dedication, discipline, all of those things, which are incredible life skills.
"They're amazing to take through life, regardless of whether you get they get an elite level or not."
