TIM Tszyu, eldest son of boxing great Kostya Tszyu, is following in his father's footsteps.
Aged 14, and already taller than his dad, Tim has given away a promising representative career in soccer to take to the ring full-time.
Six months inside the state boxing association age limit, Tim started his amateur career last week with a bang. When his opponent saw the name Tszyu he pulled out.
An older and heavier boy replaced him but the young Tszyu made short work of his task, the bout being stopped in the first round. Last weekend Tim travelled to Cessnock and won his second fight on points
and on Saturday afternoon, he fights for the first time in the gym where he trains: his dad's Tszyu Boxing Academy, beside the Rockdale PCYC.
Kostya Tszyu has not yet seen his son fight competitively. He has been in Russia this year, setting up a chain of sporting academies around the country. Instead, he will watch a video of Tim in action, while
his brother-in-law and gym head trainer, Igor Goloubev, continues to look after Tim's best interests.
Tim and younger brother Nikita were never encouraged to box, (younger sister Anastasia is a gymnast), so mum Natasha was shocked when Tim asked her recently if he could take up amateur competition.
"Tim told me that I had encouraged him to play soccer (he represented both St George and Bankstown), which was true, but he stressed that his heart wasn't in it... he just wanted to box,'' said Natasha at
the family's Carss Park home this week.
As a youngster Tim used to watch his dad train and saw many of Kostya's fights on the big screen, and it wasn't long before Tim was "shadow boxing'' with his own tiny gloves. The glint in Kostya Tszyu's eyes
gave away more than a father's natural pride. And soon, Tim was following his dad to gym and working out.
Now a Newington College student, Tim is happy to be following his dad. ``It has always been my dream,'' he said in between workouts at the Tszyu Academy. ``From Russia, dad tells me on the phone I have
to train hard, like him.''
Since quitting the ring after only his second professional loss (against Ricky Hatton in June 2005) in a long professional career which won him three world titles, Kostya Tszyu has never been busier.
"I've seen less of him than what I did when he was boxing,'' Natasha laughed.
``I surprised him a few months ago by flying over to Russia without him knowing.''
Kostya has appeared in television series Dancing with the Stars and, in Russia, Dancing On Ice
Now the Russian government has contracted him to set up the academies. Like his dad in the ring, Tim was unhesitating when asked if he would aim to become a world champion.
``Yes, of course,'' he said and added, ``and become even a better boxer than dad was at his peak.''
Certainly, after years of anxiety following her famous husband's career, Natasha Tszyu will have to steel herself to do it all over again, and the same chant: "Tszyu, Tszyu, Tszyu ...''
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