Matt Maher: Delicious Orie boxing clever as he targets a date in Paris
Perhaps somewhere in a parallel universe, Delicious Orie works in an office and is well on the way to making his first million.
In this one, he’s in Poland, aiming to take another big step toward his dream of becoming Olympic super heavyweight boxing champion.
Reaching the final of the European Games tournament, which starts in Krakow this weekend, will be enough to stamp his ticket to Paris next summer.
For the past few years, that has been Orie’s sole focus, though it all could have been very different for someone who, until recently, excelled in the classroom as much as he did in the boxing ring.
When Orie graduated from Aston University with first class honours in economics and management in 2020, he had a decision to make.
“It was a tough one, genuinely,” he says. “I was quite emotionally attached to studying. It was a big part of my life. Stopping that after my degree was a big decision. But it showed how powerful boxing was to me.
“Where would I be if I’d stuck with my studies? Probably finishing my PhD. Or I might have been in Canary Wharf at an investment bank. HSBC or JP Morgan, maybe. I’d probably be very busy – busier than I am even now – but making a lot more money!”
That last sentence is said with a chuckle and while it is always fun to fantasise about what might have been, Orie has no regrets about dedicating himself solely to boxing.
“I could have done both,” the 26-year-old continues. “There are GB boxers who have done Masters degrees on the side. But I’m an all-or-nothing kind of person. My dad has a saying, that you don’t want to be a jack of all trades and a master of none. That’s always stuck with me.”
