When Alexis Pritchard speaks, you can hear a hint of her South African accent.
But don’t let her looks fool you — her petite yet muscular frame hides the fact that she can knock you out with just one punch.
Born in September 1983, the SA-born athlete became the first female boxer representing New Zealand to win a bout at the 2012 Olympic Games.
And now she can add nude model to her resumé after releasing a series of photographs of her naked form.
Originally hailing from Kensington, Cape Town, she moved to New Zealand at the age of 14 and joined the competitive world of amatuer boxing in 2003 in an effort to get fit.
Her rise to fame is inspiring to say the least, but just days after winning a record 11th national title in 2016, she decided to hang up her gloves. Her abrupt retirement from boxing came after she failed to qualify for the Rio Olympics.
Now, her drive to succeed has driven her back out of retirement. In December 2017 she announced her comeback and hopes to compete at the Commonwealth Games, held in April this year..
Stronger and more self-assured, our Kensington girl is stopping at nothing to make her mark on the world.
She’s now embarked on a massive fundraising campaign, which includes a series of naked photographs.
“I think the photos are beautiful and it celebrates the female form, and celebrates the beauty of the body and the strength of the body,” she told the New Zealand Herald during a recent interview.
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Preparing for a fight is no simple task, Pritchard told the Herald’s Brett Phibbs: "In the first couple of weeks of training I was like 'why are you doing this to yourself again?'
“It took quite a few months to get back into the swing of the training, the eating, the sleeping, and all those tiny commitments that you make.”
The images show a fiercely independent woman that many young people can look up to.
And because it’s Friday, we scoured Pritchard’s Instagram feed (@boxelex) for some #FridayFeeling inspo.
Finding empowerment in art
A post shared by Alexis Pritchard(@boxerlex) on Dec 30, 2017 at 2:55pm PST
Be good to yourself
A post shared by Alexis Pritchard(@boxerlex) on Feb 18, 2018 at 11:27pm PST
Inspired by courageous women
I’m in Akl at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games athlete workshop! Here’s my inspiration behind my #RoadtoRio @BoxerLex pic.twitter.com/uiIujCqKrs
— NZ Olympic Team (@nzolympics) February 11, 2016
The knockout
A post shared by Alexis Pritchard(@boxerlex) on Jan 21, 2018 at 3:40pm PST