Lewis Richardson boxes clever to secure distinction in his master’s degree at Sheffield Hallam University
GB Boxing’s Lewis Richardson will graduate with a distinction in his master’s degree in Sports Business Management having recently completed a two-and-a-half year course at Sheffield Hallam University.
The 25-year-old middleweight from Colchester has combined his studies with being a full-time member of the World Class Programme (WCP) for boxing and, in this period, has won a silver medal at the 2022 European Championships and a bronze at the 2022 Commonwealth Games along with a host of other medals at tournaments on the international boxing circuit.
Richardson said: “It’s such a great feeling to have completed the course and now have a degree. The last few years have been a challenge, having to balance the two things, but it’s been a good distraction away from boxing, though I am now grateful to have got over the line.
“I like to excel in everything I do and put high standards on myself. Whilst I am always wanting more, I have had a good couple of years boxing whilst studying and I’ve come out of it with a distinction which I’m told is the best result of last year’s cohort which is an extra something to be proud of.
During his time at Sheffield Hallam, Richardson was part of the Performance Athlete Support Programme (PASP) which allows athletes wanting to expand their education to balance university life whilst achieving their sporting potential.
Richardson added: “Being a PASP student meant I was given a scholarship which did support me financially but more importantly it supported me with things like work management and allowed me to get extensions on deadlines because Hallam were so understanding of my sporting commitments.
“Having that in place made my experience so much better as they were really flexible. If anything suddenly changed in my boxing calendar with regards to any competitions and training camps that arose, they would always find solutions to work around that suited my best interests.”
Richardson’s final project as part of his course was inspired by his experience as a member of the GB Boxing squad, where the boxers rarely get to compete on home soil, so he decided to conduct a feasibility study of what it would require for GB Boxing to host an international boxing competition
He explained: “It took a lot of research, and I got a lot of support from the GB Boxing staff. It was really interesting to see things from a different side of the WCP which, as a boxer, I don’t usually see. It gave me a better understanding and a greater respect for the work that people do behind the scenes.”
Richardson’s interest in the course stemmed from wanting to continue his studies in business having earned three grade As at A-Level in Business, Sport and Sociology.
He said: “The degree was always to give myself a plan B and a potential career post-boxing. I an fully invested in my boxing career for the next 5 or 6 years but after that, I think a sports business management degree can offer me a lot of opportunities to pursue a second career in sport.
“I hope it will also help in my boxing career as it will help me to better understand the business side of the sport, so I hope to be able to put it to good use in both the short and the long term.
Richardson’s application and time at University was supported by GB Boxing’s Performance Lifestyle advisor, James Hooper, who is contracted from the English Institute of Sport (EIS).
Hooper explained: “Initially my role supporting Lewis was to help him explore what we wanted to do alongside boxing. We recognised he had enough spare time to be doing something extra and with his previous college experience of sports business we felt studying something similar at university was a good route to take.
“Throughout the application process the key figures at Sheffield Hallam were impressed with the way he held himself and the way he approached the course in a professional manner. Coupled with his position in elite sport this gave them enough evidence to suggest he went straight into a Master’s course rather than the undergraduate one he was initially looking at.
“During his time on the course my role was to firstly prepare him for workload university brings and then offer him a safe space to come and discuss any challenges he was facing both with his work and time management and help find solutions. I also provided that additional link between himself and the rest of the performance team to make sure the coaches were aware of what he had going on and when he was likely to be at his busiest.
“When it came to his final project, I was there to help him explore his ideas and ask questions in a way that enabled him to come up with a structure and a plan to execute what he wanted to do.”
Richardson added: “GB Boxing were good to me. They were very understanding of my University commitments happy to accommodate them around training. They also sorted me out a workspace within the training centre which was helpful. James Hooper was really helpful throughout the two years offering me a lot of guidance and always being there to answer any questions or concerns I had
“The whole WCP pulled together and there wasn’t one stage where I felt overwhelmed with the workload of the two commitments and that is credit to the atmosphere that has been created here in the gym. Between GB Boxing and Sheffield Hallam University they worked really well together and I’m grateful for what that has allowed me to achieve.”