05/02/2026
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https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/dale-arrowsmith-3?utm_medium=FA&utm_source=CL
This is Dale and his grandad Roy. Dale is going to be running in his grandad’s footsteps as he raises money for a boxing gym named after him 🙌
Dale will take part in the Manchester Marathon, representing Roy Richardson's Academy in Stockport.
Back in the 80s when Roy was 50-years-old he ran the marathon for the club, and Dale thought it was only right he did the same 👏
Born in Ancoats in 1933, Roy got into boxing in the 1950s by fighting punters for money in the carnival boxing booths of Longford Park in Chorlton.
At 21, he was called up for national service and joined the Royal Engineers. After being discharged, he went on to marry his wife Pat. The couple moved to New Zealand, where Roy began training young fighters at a local club.
When Roy and Pat moved back to the UK he began training at the former Bredbury Steelworks gym in Stockport in the early 1970s. Now based in Compstall, the club was renamed the Roy Richardson Boxing Academy in his honour in 2018 🙌
In 2021, Roy died at 88-years-old after suffering with Alzheimer'. Dale has been in charge of operations ever since 💔
A non-profit organisation, the gym relies on the work of volunteers, who train dozens of members aged between 11 and 40-years-old. They gym needs new equipment with running costs soaring.
Professional fighter Dale said: "We do it for nothing, just for the love of helping the kids really. We survive on whatever the kids give us, which is around £3 per session and fundraising.
"It's difficult, it's very difficult. Equipment costs have gone up, everything has skyrocketed.”
RIP Roy 💔 Thank you for keeping his memory alive 🕊️
