will it be too late for him to turn pro after this olympics? does he have any plans to? he only had his first fight at 19 and is now the world no 1 l.welter, but has he stayed am too long as he'll be 28 after the london 2012?
I don't get this nonsense about staying am til you're like 28-32 etc. It's the equiv of being in college at that age imo. Ok, the experience is invaluable, but i can't think of many who are in their late 20's who turned pro who really stood out.
It depends how he does at the Olympics, if he medals he'll get some very good offers to turn pro and if he is happy to fast track himself then he can still do ok.
Tom will medal, being his cousin I'll be putting quite a bit of money on it. on it. He will turn pro after the Olympics and he will do well. His dedication to the sport is second to none and he will make it work. He should of gone the last Olympics ahead of Frankie Gavin, they knew Frankie was struggling to make the weight but still chose to take him instead of Tom and then look what happened with Frankie having to pull out.
its simple he gets paid a lot more than most pros and doesn't need to sell tickets so its a good way of life for him so good luck to him
He is a young 27 in reality and a top class am. Lets be honest he can be moved fairly quickly im sure he will want to turn pro there will be nothing left for him at am level. Only lacing up a pair of gloves at 19 means he will have the same equivalent experience as somebody who started at 12 and turned pro at 20. Its no big deal in my eyes and he has been boxing at a very high level for the past 3 years. Boxers who have turned pro late have done well Nate Campbell, Antonio Tarver, Carl Froch have all gone on to win world titles having turned pro in the latter half of their 20's. He just needs to be moved fairly quickly and it does depend how he adapts to the pro game but I think he will have a decent fanbase and a fair few people after him he has had a decent bit of mainstream coverage as a "bad lad done good" story and fair play to him. Apparently he is on the shortlist to hold the British flag at the opening ceremony in 2012 I think he is a very good candidate. Good luck to the lad :good