Bronze medalist Harry Garside says he would be betraying his younger self if he heads to this year's Paris Olympics and doesn't fight for the top of the podium.
The 26-year-old leads a historic 12-man Australian boxing team aiming for the country's first-ever gold medal in the discipline.
The team includes Australia's first Indigenous and Muslim women, Marissa Williamson-Pohlman and Tina Rahimi, and triples the number of women heading to Tokyo in 2021 from two to six. He is a member of a combat unit.
However, no athlete boasts as much name value as Garside, who broke Australia's 33-year Olympic boxing medal drought and entered the professional ranks at the Tokyo Olympics.
Even a perfect 3-0 start to his professional career and winning the Australian lightweight title could not fulfill his dream of tasting Olympic gold.
“Professional boxing was great, wasn't it? Little by little you got more visibility in the media and you learned a lot. It was almost a different sport and it was the first time I was getting paid,” Garside told AAP.
“But I felt like I was betraying my younger self by coming so close in Tokyo and not rolling the dice again.
“I felt like if I didn't do that, I'd be disappointed when I turned 50.
“I'm a guy who, once I commit to something, I give it my all…Once I made that decision, I was locked in Paris.”
Garside is approaching a second tilt in his professional career after Paris, but admits his first career was held back by the need to scratch the Olympic itch.
“It was great, but my heart wasn't completely satisfied because my younger self wanted to be a gold medalist,” he said.
“There was something different about fighting 10 rounds, but I've always been an endurance athlete and not a big puncher, so I think I can't really please the crowd that much sometimes.
“Who knows about professional boxing, maybe another Olympics, but I'll make a decision after Paris.”
Caitlin Parker will join Garside as a returning Olympian, while Williamson Pohlman and Callum Peters will be the first two Indigenous athletes to be officially selected for Paris.
Williamson-Pohlman, 22, said competing at the top level was a continuation of his journey as a “naughty foster kid” from Melbourne's western suburbs.
“I started boxing when I was 17…I used to fight all the time at school, but I just liked punching,” she told AAP.
“When I actually tried boxing, boxing really touched my heart. And I kind of fell in love with this sport.”
The Ngarrinjeri woman said representing Indigenous Australians in and out of the ring was what drove her forward.
“I like to put my people on the map. When you go overseas, sometimes people don't even know that Australia has a black history and a black future,” she said.
“While I represent Australia in two worlds, I have also built a career in Aboriginal issues outside of sport, which I hope to continue to pursue once my Olympic journey is over.”
Australian Olympic Boxing Team:
Men: Yusuf Chotia, Shannan Davey, Harry Garside, Callum Peters, Charlie Senior, Teremoana Teremoana.
Women: Tiana Echegaray, Tyra McDonald, Caitlin Parker, Tina Rahimi, Monique Surasi, Marissa Williamson Pohlman.
