The Lawyer That Packs a Punch

Australian- born Laura Saperstein, a former City lawyer, swapped the Magic Circle for the boxing ring. Despite her healthy pay packet and her success as a mergers and acquisitions lawyer at Freshfields she found her true calling whilst in her thirties-to be a professional female boxer, and she’s never looked back since!

Highly articulate, gregarious and passionate, Laura has rapidly become a big name in boxing circles and there’s little stopping her from rising to the top of the ranks.

At the time of writing, Laura is in training for her third pro fight which takes place in London in April. She tells Law and More about life, law and the motives behind her radical career change…

Obviously the Law and boxing are two very different disciplines. How did you first get into boxing and why did you decide to give up Law full time?

Wandering about Camden market one day a friend saw an ad for a kickboxing class and asked me to go along to give her moral support. I reluctantly agreed and when I showed up for the first lesson I felt silly and embarrassed, like a lot of the females in the class. Once I threw a few punches though, felt the release of energy and tension and realised the natural power it I had, I was hooked. I found the combination of using my physical power, along with my intellect and senses very exciting. Martial arts involve a lot of self-choreography that takes a real commitment to master; the footwork and co-ordination with your hands is complex and challenging and then there's the necessity to adapt to the styles and abilities of different opponents and to read them as people (notice their doubts or hesitations and captalise on those or realise when what you are doing isn't going to work and change tack). I loved the fact that it engaged both my mind and my body in a way no other sport had.
 
I was never too keen on the kicking part though. It seemed to me to upset the body's natural balance and rhythm. A few months after I started kickboxing classes, a boyfriend took me to watch my first professional boxing match and I was totally enthralled. Boxing fans are quite a rowdy bunch and I got annoyed because it made it difficult for me to concentrate on what was going on. I ended up sitting with my fingers in my ears, refusing to speak to anyone, including my boyfriend. I was enthralled by the finely honed, lean muscularity of the boxers, their stamina and the sharpness of their reactions. I felt an overwhelming desire to have what they had.

Would it have been impossible to carry on practising Law whilst also boxing professionally?

Definitely. Both jobs are extremely high-pressured and it would have been completely impossible to devote myself to both professions. Perhaps if I was working 9-5 it would have been easier, but my job at Freshfields was certainly not that!

 What criteria do you need to become a professional boxer?

Firstly you need to have incredible determination and resilience...and not just in the ring. You have to constantly push yourself through pain barriers and be prepared to train very, very hard.

Obviously you need to have the actual courage to go in to combat! Female boxers also have the added pressure of sexism within the profession. Female boxing is still  an underdeveloped and underrepresented sport- much like most sports in which women participate. It’s so hard for women to make a living from sport-take professional women’s football for example. There’s some great talent there which is not reflected in pay. Luckily I’ve had some incredible support, which really helps. If you’re mentally resilient you can pretty much get back up after being knocked down, metaphorically speaking.

Are there many women in professional boxing and do you know other women who have given up the careers to fully focus on the sport?

No! There are lots of lawyers that change careers but I think people, in general, feel more comfortable when they are doing something traditional, inside the box, or something that is expected of them. I never had a five year plan and no real expectations either.

Actually I had no clue what I wanted to do when I started out! I trained as a journalist and starting working on an Australian TV station as a news reporter.  I then went on to study law. Studying law was a revelation for me. I’d never had any particular interest in the subject itself, but the structure and rules of engagement grabbed me. It involved hard work, determination and commitment – and, to get the very top, a little creativity. I worked as a lawyer for a number of years, reached managerial level, and now I want to do something entirely different. Even though I didn’t really have a life plan I always believed in my own capabilities. I knew I was going to be successful no matter what I did.

What's your typical day like now?

I don’t really have a typical day to be honest. I go running in the morning and have my coffee and eat a healthy breakfast. Actually my diet is pretty boring ( no 12 eggs and a pint of milk!) and I still struggle to give up my evening glass of wine, much like any working professional really!

I eat small amounts and try to plan my meals around my training. I spend the afternoon in the gym and after that I work from home on my laptop on my bed! I own my own business as a landlord for a number of properties I own, that’s how I get most of my income. Also, I‘ve got new responsibilities which take up a lot of my time. Sometimes I have to do interviews or go on shoots or hand out prizes at schools!   Recently I auditioned for Gladiators, but I didn’t get through- I don’t think my ‘assets’ were ample enough! It wasn’t something for me anyway- I’ve never sought fame or celebrity.

 What was your typical day like when you were a lawyer?

Similarly, I had no ‘typical’ day either! Some days I would have very little to do and twiddled my thumbs whilst on other days I’d be completely flat out. At Freshfields I was senior in the management teams and would have to fly all over Europe for meetings, conferences and negotiations. As most lawyers know, some weeks can be spent locked in a room, analysing documents and then suddenly a huge deal would be thrown at us and I’d be on the first plane to Dusseldorf for negations.

What do your friends, family and ex- colleagues think of your decision?

They’ve all been extremely supportive. In fact, Freshfields, my former employer, are sponsoring me. Obviously there are some people who think what I’ve done is quite radical but they all are happy to be associated with something so ‘odd’. Most people think ‘Wow, that’s so cool’!

I was at an interview for Sky News and the co-head of Freshfields was sitting in the boardroom. I didn’t really know who he was, as you never really get to see those types of people and was quite taken aback when he came up to talk to me! It’s so funny to see such a mix of people come down to watch me fight. Boxing fans have never really been a ‘traditional’ crowd so it’s really amusing to see East End types ( Laura has boxed at York Hall, Bethnal Green- the spiritual home of boxing) rubbing shoulders with lawyers and investment bankers. Quite a lot of women come down to watch me and I think I’ve inspired them and shown them that it is quite possible to do something ‘different’ if you put your mind to it! Boxing really needs more fans though- everyone that has come down to a match tell me how much fun they had. 

Laura is eager to promote the health and fitness benefits of non-contact boxing training for women . She is hoping to organise a weekend training retreat very soon in a seaside village in Kent- involving intense training for weight-loss/ fitness and a little pampering! Interested parties should contact Laura at the below email address:

 For more information contact Laura at:  boxergirl@boxergirl.net or vist www.laurasaperstein.com to check out Laura's forthcoming fights.

Interview with Vanessa Wozniak vwozniak@lawandmore.co.uk