Former student brings home gold after dominating at world championships

Thai boxing powerhouse Iman Barlow has added a gold medal to her impressive trophy cabinet after winning the World Games title in the USA.

Iman, 28, who graduated from Loughborough College with a BTEC Extended Diploma in Sport, won the 57kg women’s division at the games which were held in Birmingham, Alabama, over the weekend (15-17 July 2022).

She defeated Tierra Brandt of USA in the final of the competition and was the only Briton to win a medal in the Muay Thai tournament.

Last December, she flew the flag for Britain at the IMFA championships where she won the women’s 57kg division, defeating former world champion Anaëlle Angerville from France in the final.

Danny Lee, Curriculum Manager for FE Sport at College, said: “There’s not much else you can say about Iman’s achievements in this sport. She is truly one of the best on the planet in her weight division and such a great character to go along with it.

“As a teacher, it’s so rewarding to see students go on to achieve such incredible accolades in their fields. We couldn’t be more proud to have played a part in her sensational journey.”

Iman, from Melton, won every single round of her World Games contests against Matilde Rodrigues of Portugal in the quarter-finals and Sweden’s Patricia Axling in the semi-finals. She lost just one round against Brandt in the final.

Nicknamed ‘Pretty Killer’, Iman is one of Thai Boxing’s genuine superstars – winning multiple European and World titles over the last few years.

Picture courtesy of fightrecord.co.uk.