Profiles

Juliette Winter has a new nickname - the only problem is she doesn't like it!

"They call me 'Stormy' at gym," she explains. "I guess I must have been in a bad mood when I first started training and the name's just stuck!"

Juliette Winter

It seems an appropriate name for the 34-year-old Derby fighter who admits she first become involved with boxing as it provided an outlet for her fiery temper.

She told BBC Radio Derby's Alex Trelinski: "I'm a stubborn person and I get quite angry about things so boxing's the perfect expression for me and suits me down to the ground.

"It's a good way to get rid of energy and I really enjoy the discipline which training brings."

Juliette began boxing in 2000 and was one of the first women to win a British professional boxing title when she took the British Masters for a super flyweight contest in London six years later.

Now she's got her eye on more titles - and is keen to raise the profile of women's boxing in Britain.

She said: "I started back in 2000 and there were probably about one or two professional women fighters in the UK. Now there are about ten.

"It's quite tricky getting fights but it's getting better all the time.

"We've got former boxers like Clifton Mitchell and Neville Brown putting a lot into the game and Clifton's promoting now which means hopefully we'll be able to put on more shows in Derby.

"It's quite difficult for girls in this country to make any money at the moment because the big promoters just don't want to put girls on.

"But I think they're missing a trick because I have a sparring partner from Germany and she's a millionaire because in other countries you get better media and promoter support."

You can listen to Juliette's interview in full using the audio link above.