OGOGO'S TRIBUTE TO MUM.

Byline: Gerry Cox

BRITISH boxer Anthony Ogogo dedicated his victory yesterday to his seriously ill mum Teresa - and said winning Olympic gold would be nothing compared to her battle.

The Lowestoft-born middleweight cruised past Junior Castilla, of the Domincan Republic, and immediately dashed to check on his mum, who is in a Norfolk hospital recovering from a brain haemorrhage.

And Ogogo, a part-time model who once appeared in Big Brother Celebrity Hijack, was also keen to discover if his sister had given birth - after going into labour.

Straight after seeing off Castilla by a 13-6 margin at the ExCel Arena, Ogogo said: "My eldest sister Leanne went into labour today so I'll phone her and hopefully I have another little nephew or niece. She's just down the corridor from my mum, so she can update me.

"Mum had a brain haemorrhage six weeks ago, and she's still recovering and doing amazingly well. She's been in the critical care unit for a good month.

"I don't think she'll have seen the fight but she will have been kept up to date.

"Hopefully, I've given her a boost and it will help in her recovery."

He won all three rounds to qualify for the last 16 comfortably. "That was for Mum," added Ogogo, roared on by a partisan crowd including three other sisters and his girlfriend.

Inspiration "Winning the Olympics would be nothing in comparison to what Mum's been going through. I'm really proud of her. She's given me the strength to get in the ring and the inspiration to do well."

Ogogo had shoulder surgery earlier this year, and then had to be persuaded by his sisters to keep his Olympic dream alive when his mother was taken ill. "There was a stage where I didn't think I was going to be boxing at the Olympic Games because it just didn't seem important with all that was going on at home," he said.

"But my sisters kind of ordered me back to training with the squad and the team have been really good with me to - they've given me time off to go and see certain members of my family."

Now Ogogo faces world No.1 Ievgen Khytrov, of Ukraine and accepts: "It will be really hard, he's world champion. But with that crowd and my coaches, the team I've got, I feel I can rise to the occasion.

"The draw's not been kind, but I believe I can beat him. I wouldn't be here if I didn't."

Irish bantamweight John Joe Nevin thrashed Dennis Ceylan, of Denmark, to reach the last 16. Nevin, from a travelling family, was cheered on by hundreds of fans and said he was confident he could win gold.

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PROUD AS PUNCH: Anthony Ogogo