THE latest Paudie Palmer West Cork Sports Star Youth award winner Evan Collins is a world kickboxing champion at the age of 15.
The Skibbereen teen is the latest world champion to emerge from West Cork Kickboxing Club that is also home to former world champions Tony Stephenson and Lily de la Cour, both from Bantry.
Under the guidance of his coach, and West Cork Sports Star Hall of Famer, Ian Kingston, Evan returned from the WAKO Youth World Kickboxing Championships in Budapest in September with a gold medal.
It’s hard to believe but Evan’s love of kickboxing began ten years earlier.
‘I was five years old when I started but really got into it when my two older brothers, Michael and Cian, first got going,’ he said.
‘It was easy to get stuck into it. I already had some of my idols training there, Tony and Lily who are both world champions. It’s nice to be able to train with them and with all the older lads who come along as well.
‘When I was younger, I used to play a bit of football and do a bit of swimming. Then I realised kickboxing was what I wanted to do. I stuck to it and I have kept going ever since.
‘There’s so much to it, a lot of technique involved, it is not just kickboxing. You have to have good technique, good precision and cardio as well.’
Evan travelled to Budapest for the WAKO Youth World Kickboxing Championships in confidence after an encouraging year that saw him qualify for the semi-finals at the Italian World Cup and the final at the Hungarian World Cup.
Having fought eight fights over five days, the Skibb teen came up against Hungarian Szebenyi-Nagy Szabolcs in the -57kg grade final.
Despite having twice lost to the same opponent earlier in the year, Evan turned a tight bout that was drifting away from his grasp into a world championship victory.
The moment Evan Collins discovered he was a world champion. His coach Ian Kingston is in the background.
‘I knew in between rounds that I was down and from talking to my coach,’ Evan explained.
‘Obviously, coming up with a plan in between rounds is not easy as there’s only a minute (break). I had to come up with a quick strategy.
‘After the first round, I knew what I had to work on, knew what I had to do, and I came back and won 3-0. At the end, I honestly just felt relief as all the hard work that had been put into it paid off.’
Whilst his coaches have played a huge role in his success, Evan took time to pay tribute to his parents, Laura and Tom.
‘My parents have been absolute stars along the way,’ he smiled. ‘They've always supported me. I wouldn't be here without them. They bring me to all the competitions, international fights, everything. There's a bit of money that goes into it as well, so I wouldn't be here without them. I owe them a huge thanks.’
He has finished out the current year with even more success, winning two gold medals at the recent Bristol Open in England. Next up for the Skibbereen youngster are the Irish Championships in March. Depending on how things go, he will hopefully be back in Budapest to compete at a (higher) junior level.
‘Next year’s European Championships, hopefully,’ is what Evan is aiming for in 2025.
‘I have to qualify first though, so I have to go to the Irish nationals next March first. I'm possibly going to be changing disciplines as well next year. I’ll be going into the ring, so that's full contact. It's a whole different style. I've got a lot of training to do. Hopefully, I’ll qualify and come back with a good result again.’
Evan has already etched his name into the West Cork Kickboxing Club’s history books. Encouragingly, it appears the best is yet to come for the latest Paudie Palmer Youth Award winner.
