Warwick boxer Jaya Kalsi selected for Team GB at the Youth Olympic Games

Warwick boxer Jaya Kalsi will represent Team GB at the Youth Olympic Games in Dakar, Senegal, after receiving the news of her selection the day before her 17th birthday.

She described the call-up as an "amazing present to get". The Games get under way on 31 October, and it will be the highest-level competition of her career so far.

"A great honour"

"I'm looking forward to it, it's a great honour to represent Team GB and my country," she told BBC CWR. She said her preparations, training with Team GB in the gym in recent weeks, had gone "really well".

The Sikh fighter is ranked third in the world at her level and is a European gold medallist. She will compete in the 54kg weight category and will find out who she faces when the draw takes place in Senegal.

"The draw will happen when we're out there," she said. "It will be an amazing experience."

Eyes on 2028 and 2032

Kalsi hopes a strong showing in Dakar will be another step towards her long-term goals. "I aim to make it to the top, I'm looking to hopefully get a place on the 2028 Olympic squad and hopefully the 2032 Olympics and then go pro after that," she said.

"I'm looking to bring back the Youth Olympic gold medal and get a step up."

Inspired by her dad

She has trained at Cleary Boxing Gym in Leamington Spa since she was young, taking up the sport at the age of seven.

"I loved doing sports before that, I did swimming and karate but my dad, he was a massive fan of boxing so he got me into the sport," she said. "He looked up to Ricky Hatton and Floyd Mayweather, and he basically took me to the gym."

Irish boxer Katie Taylor, who recently ended her career as a three-time and two-weight undisputed champion, was a "massive inspiration", Kalsi said, highlighting Taylor's impact on women's boxing. She also admires Mayweather's "hard work and dedication".

Her mother, who she said had supported her all the way, will travel with her to Senegal.

A first for Africa

The Dakar Games are the first Olympic event ever held in Africa, bringing together thousands of young athletes from around the world.

Women's boxing has grown fast in recent years, and Kalsi's selection is another sign of the talent coming through in the Midlands. She heads to Senegal with a clear aim: to come home with gold.