“I looked at myself in the mirror. There was nothing on me. I just didn’t know how I was going to get through it. I knew I had to, because I’ve got three kids, but I just didn’t know how.” As Adam Smith speaks, I can see embryonic tears clinging to his eyeballs, intent not to drip beyond the dam of his lower eyelid. To be honest, I’m looking through the same tears on my side of the table.
It’s strange to hear the voice of boxing piercing through the background noise of a west London cafe, rather than the background noise of a sold-out arena. On an early autumn morning in Acton, Smith is speaking over the occasional hiss of a milk steamer and clink of cups and plates, rather than the dull thud of punches and inebriated roar of a boxing crowd. But here he is. No microphone, no headset: raw and unfiltered.
It’s no surprise that Smith knows his way around a story. During our 90-plus minutes of conversation, he reels off tale after tale from his three decades at ringside with Sky Sports, and drops legendary name after legendary name (yet never boastfully). He does so as fluidly and enthusiastically as if he were on the job, and after he reveals he studied Theatre and Dramatic Arts at university, it makes sense that he orates like a voice actor: not so much accentuating words with movements, but rather drawing those words from his mouth with motion. Now and then, he’ll raise an eyebrow to lift out one word, as if it was attached to a string, then sling it across the table with an outstretched hand.
But as Smith reaches the most compelling story of all – his own – he takes his first true pause of the day, finally needing to search for the right words. Those enthusiastically raised eyebrows are replaced by troubled, furrowed ones, as he recalls his harrowing experience with cancer over the last two years. “Yeah, I... errr... It.. It was a brutal period,” the 53-year-old finally manages. “I’m very, very lucky to be here today.”
Denne historien er fra September 12, 2024-utgaven av The Independent.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra September 12, 2024-utgaven av The Independent.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
'Fight days are for fighting, not chatting to each other'
This Saturday, Joshua Buatsi will share a card with his friend Anthony Joshua for the fourth time, boxing Willy Hutchinson for an interim title at Wembley. Alex Pattle gets the lowdown
F1 title opening could prove to be Norris's only chance
Under the afternoon sun on Saturday in the Azerbaijani capital of Baku, it felt like the moment the drivers’ title slipped away from Lando Norris.
The Man City hearing must answer these two questions
Amid all of the uncertainty around the Manchester City investigation, there is one view that can be stated with confidence as it finally gets under way.
Super clubs have nothing to fear from Uefa's shake-up
As a new Champions League format makes its debut today, Miguel Delaney looks at what it means for the competition
Final messages from Titan before implosion revealed
“All good here.”
New Zealand's bird of the year picked up by a penguin
A rare, smelly and yellow-eyed penguin species has been crowned New Zealand’s bird of the year for the second time in less than a decade.
Death toll rises as floods devastate central Europe
The death toll across central Europe from the worst flooding in decades has risen to at least 16 after Storm Boris brought a month’s worth of rain in just 24 hours.
Germany reimposes border controls to tackle migration
Germany has reintroduced checks on all nine of its land borders in a move that has angered a number of its neighbours – but brought praise from the far right.
Putin boosts troop numbers as missiles pummel Ukraine
President Vladimir Putin yesterday ordered the regular size of the Russian army to increase by 180,000 troops to 1.5 million soldiers, the third time he has expanded its ranks since sending the military into Ukraine in February 2022.
'I figured he must be either dead or in prison by now...'
Those who know Ryan Routh talk of his previous 'escapades'