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‘Too young and too small’: the man who wanted to turn Garside away

Writer's picture: Ben WaterworthBen Waterworth

When he was nine years old, Harry Garside was told he was ‘too young and too small’ to make it as a boxer.


Those words came from his coach Brian Levier, who 18 years on, will be the person Harry wants to hang his Olympic gold medal around the neck of, should he win in Paris.


Now 82-years-old, Brian remains part of Harry’s coaching team. Without the seasoned coach in his corner, Harry wouldn’t be about to compete in his second Olympics.


“I'm so grateful that at the age of nine I walked into a boxing gym and met that man at the start,” he said.


“He was unsure if he was gonna take me on. He's like, ‘he's too young, he's too small’.


“He pushed me to the side and then he saw me on the speed ball and then instantly he saw something in me.


“It was one of these sliding door moments in my life. Here we are 18 years later and I'm doing it for him and for the rest of my family.


“At that age, I struggled to believe in myself and then someone else saw something in me. I've become the best version of myself. I'm so grateful for that and I can't wait to put that gold medal on his neck.”



Since his break-through bronze medal in Tokyo, the first Australian Olympic medal in Boxing in 33 years, the sport has seen a resurgence across Australia.


In Paris, 12 boxers will represent the green and gold, the largest boxing team ever by Australia at the Olympics.


Of these athletes, 10 will make their Olympic debut, with Harry and team captain Caitlin Parker the only two returning boxers from Tokyo.


Harry says the hunger from just missing the gold medal bout in Tokyo is driving him to become Australia’s first boxing gold medallist.


“To get so close to gold last time and then to come back, I need to honour that young kid who believed he could walk with giants and try and get that gold medal,” Harry said.



The team culture within the Australian Boxing Team is the best Harry has ever seen, something he attributes to Caitlin.


“To see the evolution of the belief in the team; it is a credit to Caitlin as the captain,” he said.


“Everyone believes they're capable of winning medals…it is just what colour?


“That’s a credit to see and it's amazing to be a part of the belief in the Australian boxing team.”


Caitlin, who comes into Paris as the reigning World Championship middleweight silver medallist believes the team’s culture will drive them to success.


“We've got such a great team, our culture is amazing,” she said.


“I love our culture and everyone's diversity brings so much to the team. We are able to push each other and be there for each other.


“It is an individual sport, but at the end of the day, we are all a team and we'll all be there cheering each other at all the fights.”


The Boxing competition at Paris 2024 begins on 27 July at 11.30pm AEST at the North Paris Arena.


This article was originally written for The Australian Olympic Team. You can read the published version here

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