Boxer Clay Waterman is fighting fit and ready to win a medal at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games in April.
Although waiting on an official confirmation of his place, Waterman is confident of boxing for his country after winning all three of his matches at the Australian National Championships in Sydney.
He won the first by knockout and the second two on points in the light heavyweight 81kg division.
Originally from Beaudesert but now based at Loganlea, Waterman is no stranger to fighting on the international amateur stage, having won a gold medal in 2011 at the World Junior Championships and a silver at the 2016 Olympic qualifiers before being ruled out of a trip to Rio de Janeiro due to injury.
The light heavyweight said he was looking forward to showing the international boxing community what he was made of in April.
“It definitely was a goal of mine to make the Gold Coast 2018 games. I’ve been working towards it for the last year,” he said.
“I’ve represented my country a few times. I won the gold medal at the world junior championships in 2011 and I went to the men’s world championships this year in August in Germany.
“I actually got pretty sick (in Germany) but I ended up winning a fight and almost winning my second one but I’ve got a lot more to show the world and the 2018 games is something that can definitely do that for me.”
The 21-year-old boxer said he will continue to train out of his shed at Loganlea under the tutelage of two of his relatives as the Commonwealth Games draws nearer.
“I’ve just got to keep focused and keep doing what I’m doing. How I’m training now with my dad and my uncle I think we have got a really good rhythm going,” he said.
“It’s mainly going to be training camps and lots of sparring.”
With his amateur record at an impressive 127 wins and nine losses, Waterman would not rule out the possibility of turning professional at some stage in the future.
“It depends really. I’ve just got to play my cards right and take my time with it. I don’t want to go rushing into anything because it’s a different ball game all together in the professional ranks,” he said.