SCTR x Ben Whittaker

The Olympic silver medalist is managed by Anthony Joshua, coached by Tyson Fury’s trainer and is on the same path as legends of the sport.

But it is actually Whittaker’s older brother Jamie and dad Tony who most inspired his fledgling boxing career.

Whittaker first walked into the gym as a hyperactive seven-year-old, who had been diagnosed with ADHD and needed an outlet to burn off energy.

But dad Jamie, a 60-bout amateur boxer himself, never wanted his boy to fight for real.

So Whittaker, at the age of just 11, took it upon himself to sign up for his first bout, unbeknown to his parents.

And after a quick trip to TX Maxx to buy some boxing boots and having borrowed some oversize shorts, he won his first contest.

From there on, his dad was convinced Whittaker could make it in the sport and vowed to join him every step of the way.

“Ever since then, from like year 7 he would come into my bedroom at around 6 in the morning, bless him, and I’d run with him while he was on his bike,” Whittaker says.

“Or I’d go swimming and ever since then the journey has stayed.”

Whittaker would go on to shine in the amateurs and before long he was called up to the England squad.

It was at that point he finally invited mum Karen to watch him box, in the Midlands championships.

But after a case of mistaken identity, the mother and son agreed it would be her first and last.

“I gave the kid a standing count and she thought it was me! So she went up to the ring, crying and stuff,” Whittaker reveals.

“My dad used to be in my corner so he couldn’t really do anything. They stopped the fight and said, ‘The lady in the red hair, can you please stop.’

“We got into the car after the fight, even though I won unanimous, and she said, ‘I don’t think I can do this’. I said, ‘Nah.’

“Even during the Olympics, she would watch the ring walk and wait for the decision.”

Whittaker reveals it was older brother Jamie, who “wasted” a career as a professional footballer, who inspired him to stay on the right track.

“One thing that really kept me on a straight path was my older brother, because he used to play football at a decent level, for Birmingham,” he says.

“But he fell into the wrong crowd, which is usually done, and didn’t want to do football anymore.

“In the end, he joined the marines – which isn’t bad – but now he looks back and it’s shoulda, woulda, coulda.

“He wasted his talent, so seeing my brother go through that stage of his life, I just say to myself, I’ve got the talent all I need to do is work hard and see where it can get me.”

Whittaker admits the Olympic dream was only realised four years before the scheduled Tokyo Games was due to take place.

But after getting on the Team GB squad at 18, he was motivated by the likes Amir Khan, James DeGale and Joshua, who all medalled themselves.

Whittaker went on to reach the light-heavyweight final in Japan, narrowly losing to accomplished Cuban Arlen Lopez.

He suffered the same Olympic heartache as the likes of Floyd Mayweather and Roy Jones Jr, who were controversially robbed in their pursuit of gold.

But Whittaker hopes to use the loss as motivation to carve out iconic careers like American legends Mayweather and Jones.

“I’m always hungry for more but that will just drive me to become better and never have that feeling again,” he says.

Whittaker left the unpaid ranks after the Olympics in 2021 and did so with over 130 bouts to his name.

He turned professional in 2022, signing a lucrative deal with promotion Boxxer and TV network Sky Sports, since going 2-0.

Whittaker is learning to transition styles in the ring under esteemed US mastermind Sugarhill Steward, but remaining a showman needs far less work.

“The GB staff used to say to me, ‘Just please don’t showboat today.’ Because I’d get a point taken off, and over three rounds it would make a fight closer,” Whittaker says.

“Whereas as a professional fighter, people like it. It’s more entertainment, more bums on seats.

“But what I’ve got to do now is marry the two, I don’t want to just be a breakdancer in the ring, I want to be a hurt artist in the ring. Dance but knock people out.”

Whittaker, 25, is learning from the best under his manager, ex-heavyweight champion Joshua and stable-mate, WBC king Fury, leaving him in a unique position.

“I’ve got the best of both worlds, I’m the middle man,” Whittaker says.

“I’ve got AJ on the one side and my coach trains Tyson on the other side. So for advice, I’m in good hands.

“But going back to AJ, he’s a good role model. I used to see him training down GB, we went through the exact same system, probably the same background as me and he’s changed not only his life, but his family and friends’ life.

“And when people are at the top, they do kind of change. But with AJ, I’d come into the gym and he’d even ask me questions, ‘Why do you do this? Why do you do that?’

“That kind of opened my eyes, it’s like, OK, he’s still trying to learn. And me coming up, I kind of absorb that.”

Whittaker, who was born in West Bromwich, with family in Wolverhampton and currently living in Darlington, is now not only a local hero, but a national role model.

And after bouncing back from heartbreak in the Olympics, the top British prospect advises any young boxer to learn from losses and remember it is all part of a learning process.

“The main thing is that the little setbacks you have, it doesn’t really matter,” he says.

“I’ve got a little cousin, she boxed in the national final and lost. She was devastated but I said, Listen, I’ve been there before. That little knockback, you think it’s the world crashing down but sadly around you the world continues.

“The main thing is that you learn from it and you don’t get disheartened and you come back better.”

Whittaker has high hopes as a world title contender in both the super-middleweight and light-heavyweight divisions.

But away from belts and box office bouts, Whittaker wants to go down as one of the best and build a future for his family.

“I would like to be remembered as one of those boxers that British fight fans, and fans all over the world, be on their tongues all the time and for them to say, ‘Remember that Ben Whittaker? He was one of the best we ever had.” he says.

“And outside of boxing, I’d like to be a role model for kids to know that, no matter the circumstances or the background you come from, you can make it.

“And a personal one for me, I’ve never been one that grew up with money, so I’d like to be in a position where I can change my mum and dad’s life as well.”