Age: 27
Event: Boxing

When Mary Spencer first stepped into a boxing ring, she knew by gut instinct that she’d found her sport. Growing up the second youngest in a family of five kids, Spencer was the athletic one, playing an array of team sports, including soccer and volleyball. But when she tried boxing at age 17, she says it “just felt right.” As she’s matured, she has come to appreciate how much competing in an individual versus a team sport motivates her: “You take more responsibility and have more control over the outcome.” But is there a fear factor? Not for Spencer. While she’s had a few black eyes and bloody noses, it hasn’t scared her off the sport. “I don’t remember ever being afraid of being punched.”

Even early on, Spencer, who lives and trains in Windsor, Ont., set her sights on going far. “I knew I was capable of being the best in the world.” But this is the first time she has had the chance to compete in the Olympics: The 2012 Games in London will mark the debut of women’s boxing as an Olympic sport.

It couldn’t have come at a better time for Spencer, now 27. “Everything has lined up in 2012, and I’m performing at my best. I now have 10 years of experience training full-time and, statistically, female boxers are in their prime in their late 20s and early 30s.”

She’s also competing in a different weight category than she is used to. In 2009, Spencer, who is five feet 11 inches, was thriving at 141 lb. (64 kg). However, when the Olympic committee announced the three weight categories for women’s boxing—51, 60 and 75 kilograms—she had to pull off a new kind of victory. “It would be impossible for me to get down to 60 kilograms [132 lb.] in a healthy way, so I needed to compete in the 75-kilogram [165 lb.] category.”

Excited by the new challenge, Spencer, along with her boxing and her strength and conditioning coaches, devised a plan for proper weight gain. To put on muscle, she bumped up her strength workouts from three to five times a week, and included more protein in her diet. By 2010, she was winning as a 75-kilogram fighter, including gold at last fall’s Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico.

No matter what the weight category, Spencer is proud to represent her home country. “I love wearing the maple leaf.” And she takes inspiration from other athletes, too, including Canadian Olympic cyclist and speed skater Clara Hughes. “She’s a phenomenal athlete and role model for me. She does a lot of charity work even though she doesn’t need to do that—she does it because that’s who she is.”

Even when Spencer is not in Windsor, the boxing ring feels like home for her. “When I’m warming up for a fight or going through the crowd, I might be nervous, but as soon as I step through the ropes into the boxing ring, I feel comfortable. I know what I need to do. I belong there.”

Tweet her: @canadianboxer

Photo courtesy of Dave Fischer Photography