How a bullied British Somali girl became a champion boxer - Lives Less Ordinary, BBC World Service

A British-Somali champion boxer, UNICEF ambassador and model, Ramla Ali has achieved more than most people do in a lifetime — but she has had to fight for every step of it. Click here to subscribe to our channel 👉🏽 https://bbc.in/3VyyriM She was just a baby when her older brother was killed by a stray grenade in the garden of their home in Mogadishu during the Somali civil war. Fearing for their lives, her parents fled the country, making a perilous boat crossing to Kenya, where Ramla almost died. The family eventually settled in London. Growing up, she was bullied and struggled with her weight. Hoping to build her confidence, her mother signed her up to a gym, where she discovered a boxercise class. Soon she was boxing at every opportunity. Knowing her parents would not approve, she kept it a secret — even as she began winning national titles and became one of the best boxers in the UK. She would go on to help reinstate boxing in Somalia, where the sport had been banned since 1976. She won an international gold medal for the country, and became the first Somali boxer to compete at the Olympic Games. Recently she returned to Somalia for the first time since leaving as a child. Thousands of fans welcomed her at the airport. She even met the President. Presenter: Jo Fidgen Producer: Emily Naylor Video Producer: Beatrice Guzzardi Photo credit: Ramla Ali 00:00 Coming up in this interview 00:42 Introduction 01:15 Hiding her boxing career from her mum 04:04 Where her passion for boxing began 05:40 Fleeing the war in Somalia 11:20 Starting over in the UK 12:04 Being bullied at school 14:22 Struggles with weight and confidence 15:38 Discovering boxing by chance 16:32 Training in secret 17:44 Working multiple gym jobs 18:15 Competing without her family knowing 21:29 Getting married 25:00 Winning national GB boxing titles 25:49 Representing Somalia at the Olympic Games 28:46 The moment her family found out 33:01 Rebuilding boxing in Somalia 35:01 Returning to Somalia after years away 35:47 Becoming a model 36:53 Founding the Sisters Club 39:24 Looking back at her achievements 40:03 Outro Watch more from Lives Less Ordinary on our YouTube playlist 👉🏽 https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz_B0PFGIn4fxldjnO2SAJ-Lg-owG7RR_&si=sw23069eN__UaEmf ---------------- This is the official BBC World Service YouTube channel. If you like what we do, you can also find us here: Instagram 👉🏽 https://www.instagram.com/bbcworldservice Twitter 👉🏽 https://twitter.com/bbcworldservice Facebook 👉🏽 https://facebook.com/bbcworldservice BBC World Service website 👉🏽 https://www.bbc.co.uk/worldserviceradio Thanks for watching and subscribing! #BBCWorldService #WorldService #boxing #womensports #olympics