A DALGETY BAY youngster is ready to show the world he packs a punch this week when he represents his country at a kickboxing competition.

Seven-year-old Danny Thomson, a Primary 3 pupil at Inverkeithing Primary, travelled to Athens on Tuesday ahead of the first day of competition at the ISKA (International Sport Karate and Kickboxing Association) Amateur Members Association World Kickboxing Championships yesterday (Wednesday).

The event, which runs until Saturday, is one of the most prestigious events on ISKA’s calendar and Danny, who trains three times a week at Goliath Kickboxing and MMA in Cowdenbeath, is competing for Scotland after parents Leah Thomson and Anthony Ward fundraised to help him realise his dream.

Having picked up two bronze medals in the points and light continuous disciplines at the recent Aberdeen Open event, Danny is also eligible to compete at an event in Orlando later in the year but this will be his first global event having taken up the sport when he was just three-and-a-half.

Proud dad Anthony said: “My eldest son used to get bullied at school and I thought I’m not going through that again so that’s why we originally put Danny into it. He’s not the tallest and we thought a wee bit of self-defence is good; he’s a placid kid but, when he puts his kickboxing gear on, he’s a different animal!

“He’s won eight or nine trophies and because he won two bronze medals at the Aberdeen Open, he qualifies for Orlando if we can get him there. This is his first time fighting at a world championship but he’s neither up nor down; most people would be nervous but he has a positive attitude and is not the kind of person who gives up easily.

“He enjoys doing it and it will build his confidence because he could be fighting people from all over the world.”

Under the guidance of Goliath coach Steven Harris, the talented youngster has progressed through gradings to achieve his blue belt and received his first invite to train with the Scotland team last year.

That involves travelling to the Skyaxe gym in Dundee once a month and Anthony continued: “He just joined the Scotland team last October/November and Steven has brought him on leaps and bounds. It’s not even been a year that he’s been with him but he’s had more fights; at one point Danny was talking a bit about giving it up but Goliath have turned it around. When he first went there, he wouldn’t walk in and start speaking to people but his confidence comes out a lot more now.”