Devil of a job to beat Angel

Angel Curtis (right)with her trainer British champion Amy Lloyd.

SHE may be named Angel but an 11-year-old girl from Oldham proved she can pack a punch after winning a world junior kickboxing championship title.

Angel Curtis, from Moorside, emerged victorious from the World Kickboxing Association competition, taking home the junior 35kg title belt.

Angel, who trains five days a week at Knuckles Muay Thai gym on Huddersfield Road with fellow champion Amy Lloyd, only started learning kickboxing last summer.

A martial art blackbelt from the age of nine, Angel was eager for a new challenge and a settled for the full-on combat art of kickboxing.

Dad Dean said: “She was ecstatic when she won.

“It was a late entry and she worked really hard to make sure she was prepared.”

Angel has to fit her hectic training sessions at around her school work from Hodge Clough Primary School.

Dean added: “I go along to every training session and every fight, cheering her on from the sidelines.”

With Angel winning six fights without a single loss, there are high hopes for the young talent.

“She really is an up-coming star and we’ve got fights arranged throughout the year, even one next week,” Dean said.

Angel’s next big competition will be in May when she heads to the British Championships.