Jamie’s joy after Mauy Thai title win
Teen starlet fights back to claim memorable win
A Greenhills fighter channelled his grief into a title winning performance at the Scottish Junior Muay Thai Championships.
Jamie Gillies took home the Junior Novice belt from the event in Ayr last month after being called up as a last minute replacement to fight defending champion Rio Murdoch.
And the 14-year-old upset the odds to take the crown in the 55kg category, coming back from losing the first two rounds to claim his first Scottish title.
His stunning victory comes soon after the deaths of three grandparents.
And Jamie’s dad David explained how he has used that pain to push himself on.
David told the News: “This sport has helped Jamie in a big way, as he was harbouring a lot of anger over losing three of his grandparents within the last two years.
“So he has channelled all of that to give him focus and discipline.
“The heart and determination he has, I couldn’t be any prouder to see him come back from two rounds down.
“Jamie has put in 100 per cent to training and his dedication from the start of this year has completely turned his life around.”
Rio Murdoch, fighting for Ayr’s Wossobama Gym, was due to face Logan James but he was forced to pull out of the fight due to unforeseen circumstances.
But Jamie, who was noticed at his last fight by the event promoter, was offered the chance as a last minute stand-in to take on a title shot, competing for College Milton-based EK Fight Gym.
It was too good an opportunity to turn down and he had to gain four kilogrammes for the fight.
Jamie said: “It’s a dream come true. No feeling in the world beats it.
“When I was down two rounds I looked down and saw the belt sitting with the judges.
“I knew I was there for one thing and one thing only - to win the title - and I used all that I had left in me to get it. It was amazing.”
Jamie is only three fights into his career, having won on his debut in May of this year.
In September he fought his second bout and after impressing in that, he earned his call up for the Scottish Championships.
And now he has that belt around his waist, it’s given the St Andrew’s and St Bride’s High School pupil a desire to aim even higher.
He added: “I want to go the rest of the year undefeated and get as many fights as I can next year to help me get into the trials for the Great Britain team.
“I’d like to think everyone at EK Fight Gym and all my family and friends for supporting me and helping me get through it all.”