“If I can do it, they can too”: Boxing champ Callum Simpson inspires our students

We were delighted to welcome Barnsley boxing hero Callum Simpson to Barnsley College, where he gave an inspiring talk to Foundation Learning students – and even joined in with a few rounds of training.

The British, Commonwealth and European super middleweight champion – who studied Sport and Exercise Sciences, and Sports Leadership, at the College a decade ago – visited the Fleets campus to share his story and talk about the power of resilience, discipline and self-belief.

Callum described his journey from growing up in Barnsley to his amateur and professional career, and the challenges he faced along the way. Students listened intently as he described how perseverance and consistency helped him progress to become one of Britain’s top boxers.

After the talk, Callum took part in boxing drills with students, who attend weekly sessions led by Foundation Learning teachers Luke Beaumont and Obada Herash.

Kelly Ardron, Head of Foundation Learning, said: “We’d like to give a huge thank you to Callum for being so generous with his time – after his talk, he stopped for photos and chatted with almost every student.

“It was inspiring to see our students so engaged, motivated and proud to connect with someone from their own town who has achieved so much.

“Boxing is a fantastic way of developing discipline, focus and self-regulation – seeing Callum, someone who’s made it to the very top, demonstrate those qualities in person was really powerful.

“Callum said during his talk that he wasn’t anyone special. I disagree – how he uses his story to inspire others is really special!”

Callum praised the students for being ‘respectful, full of energy and really engaged’, adding: “Visits like this are really important to me, because I remember being in those students’ shoes.

“It’s about showing young people that you don’t have to have everything figured out straight away, and that if you stay consistent, work hard, and believe in yourself, you can achieve whatever you set your mind to – whether that’s in sport, or anything else.

“The main message I wanted to get across was about resilience, that setbacks and failures are part of success. I’ve had plenty of moments in my career where things didn’t go right, but every time, I’ve kept pushing forward.

“I wanted to show the students that someone from where they’re from, who went to the same college and walked the same corridors, can go on to achieve their dreams. If I can do it, they can too.

“It was good to take part in the students’ boxing session and take some of them on the pads. It’s great to see the college putting effort into giving students experiences like that.”