DAVENANT Foundation School students were almost knocked out in surprise as they bumped into none other than Olympic gold medal-winning boxer James DeGale during a special P.E lesson last week.

The school had organised for the year 11 class to take part in a boxing training session at Loughton Academy’s state-of-the-art gym.

But they were treated to much more than they bargained for as they experienced first-hand what it takes to be a professional boxer, as they ran in to a DeGale training masterclass.

He went through vigorous sessions with the pads, punchbag and skipping ropes as the students looked on in awe.

“They were delighted to see James in action,” said P.E teacher Lorraine Brazier. “He really went through a thorough training session and he was dripping with sweat by the time he finished!

“Although he had worked hard he still had time to chat to the pupils, which makes him an Olympic champion all over again in my book.” The students were then able to put into practice what they had seen from the Olympic champion as they got to work with the impressive array of apparatus the gym had to offer.

But not before they had taken advantage of a quick question and answer session with the champion, who has adopted the local facility as his permanent training base as he prepares for his first professional fight next month.

The unique opportunity to train at the Academy arose through a new programme started by Davenant school to encourage pupils to gain a taster of sports they would not normally get the chance to participate in on school premises.

Pupils have the chance to specialise in boxing, horse riding, squash, volleyball or table tennis, amongst others, and Brazier believes it is a great way for them to ‘branch out’ with their sporting talents.

“It’s something different and gives them a chance to do something they wouldn’t normally do,” she added.