Boxing great Frank Bruno to discuss mental health with Wolverhampton workforce
Former world heavyweight boxing champion Frank Bruno will be visiting a Wolverhampton factory this week, where he is set to talk about mental health with members of its workforce.
One of the nation’s most popular sporting personalities due to his lovable charm and infectious enthusiasm for sport, Frank’s illustrious career in the ring began in the early 1980s when he turned professional aged 21. Hailing from Hammersmith in London, he won went on to win 40 of his 45 fights – 38 of these by knockout.
The boxing great, 61, will be at Collins Aerospace on Stafford Road, Fordhouses, tomorrow to talk about and answer questions surrounding the difficulties that arise through living with mental health, drawing on his own well-documented struggles with the illness.
Following his retirement from boxing, Frank began to suffer from depression and was later diagnosed with bipolar disorder. After battling the condition for years and learning to live with it, he set up The Frank Bruno Foundation which is dedicated to improving the mental health of men around the world.
He is now much in demand as an after-dinner speaker, delivering anecdotal tales from his title winning fights and talking about his own struggles with mental illness. The Wolverhampton visit is part of Black History Month and also comes in the wake of World Mental Health Day last week.
At the height of his boxing fame, Frank’s gruelling training regime required as much mental resilience as it did physical in order to endure twelve rounds in the ring with some of the world’s greatest boxers. Harnessing the power of the mind to achieve his goals, Frank challenged for the world title on three occasions, against Tim Witherspoon, Mike Tyson and Oliver McCall.
Able to overcome the setback of perceived failure, by 1995 Frank was stronger than ever when he faced McCall, and finally won the BC Heavyweight Champion of the World title on points.
Over the last 40 years, Frank has become firmly established as one of the sporting world’s most respected and admired figures, both for his prowess in the boxing ring and for advocating to the nation on the many issues surrounding mental health.
