Single mum’s dreams of being a champion fighter are threatened as she claims having a baby deters sponsors and she cannot afford her rent and training

A single mum fears her dreams of becoming a champion professional fighter have been dashed as she cannot afford to train and pay her rent and feels that having a baby is deterring prospective sponsors.

Molly Lindsay, 23, who debuted as a mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter in 2017,

is determined to make her son, Odin, 21 months, proud by reaching the top of her sport, which sees big names in the USA command as much as £340,000 for a single bout.

But Molly faces a choice between finding a job that can pay her rent and training to achieve her dream, as she can only take-on low-paid, part-time work if she wants to put in the hours required to become an elite athlete in her field.

Currently holding down three part-time jobs, which she fits in around training, Molly, of Southend, Essex, said: “All I want is to make my little boy proud and to show him that anything is possible if you work hard and want something enough.

“I’m currently doing a mixture of part time jobs to fund us. I do admin work, sports massage and some days I work on a farm.

“I just pick up any sort of work that will fit in between training and taking care of my baby.”

She added: “If I could get some sponsorship that would help us but, unfortunately, it’s very difficult to get as a mum.

“In most sports, there are bursaries and grants available to those on an elite pathway. These would cover training, living and childcare costs.

“Unfortunately, MMA isn’t quite there yet.”

She added: “Also, I believe there has long been a stigma that motherhood and elite sports aren’t compatible.”

Molly, who is planning to move to Northampton, where the BST Academy – a gym favoured by top ranking fighters – is based, says an athlete’s training is not cheap.

Molly says she needs around £1,000 a month to make ends meet, which includes living expenses and paying for everything from training to nutritional advice.

She said: “I have a normal MMA trainer as well as a strength and conditioning coach, who helps me with my weights and conditioning.

“I also have to work with a nutritionist. There’s a lot involved and that can end up being quite expensive.”

While Molly, who co-parents Odin with his father despite them splitting up a year ago, is happy to make sacrifices if it means she can make MMA fighting her full-time career.

She said: “I first got into MMA fighting in 2016, when I started attending classes at my local gym.

“I trained at an amateur level for a few years and I ended up in a four-year relationship with one of my coaches.

“We had a baby together and I had always planned to return to training after having Odin.”

She added: “A lot of people might think that having a baby marks the end of your athletic career, but I want to prove those stereotypes are wrong.”

In a bid to keep training, Molly has launched a GoFundMe page, asking for £1,000 towards her costs.

She said: “I realised quite early on in my training that this was the career I wanted to pursue.”

She added: “By the time I had done my second fight, I knew I would commit to this.

“In 2017, I won the Battle Arena European bantamweight title, which was only my third ever fight. I defended that title in 2019.”

Molly briefly put her MMA fighting on pause to start university, studying Sports Science at Loughborough University in Leicestershire.

But she dropped out in 2017 after around four months, as she realised she definitely wanted fighting to be her full-time passion.

She said: “University was distracting me from training and I wanted to give MMA fighting my all.

“As a female, I knew the issues surrounding fertility and the impact of training, fighting and cutting weight.”

She added: “I love my sport, but I also really wanted to be a mum, so I decided to have a child first.”

Now, Molly is looking to the future.

She said: “The BST Academy in Northampton is full of really high-level fighters and has some of Britain’s best coaches.”

She added: “If I can fund the move there from Essex, there will be a lot more opportunities for me.

“Unfortunately, there’s no financial support for the training, let alone general athlete support for people who are mums.”

And if she gets to Northampton, she will still be in a vicious cycle without funding, as if she commits more time to training, she will have fewer hours free for paid work and less money coming in.

She said: “If I’m training two to three times a day as well as caring for Odin, it means I’ll still only be able to work part-time.

“If I was getting sponsored for the training, I would be able to do it and still make ends meet but, at the moment, it’s not possible.”

Meanwhile, she is struggling to find a suitable place to live.

She said: “So far, I’ve shown interest in over 30 properties but have been rejected by every landlord.

“Unfortunately, a single mum training to be an MMA fighter isn’t seen as a reliable tenant.

“Everywhere I turn, I seem to face a certain stigma. When I fell pregnant a lot of people assumed I had wasted my potential.”

She added: “There has long persisted a stigma that motherhood and elite sports are incompatible, but it’s just not true.

“Jessica Ennis-Hill won a World Championship gold and Olympic silver medal post-pregnancy.

“Serena Williams won the Australian Open while eight weeks pregnant and swimmer Dana Vollmer won Olympic gold a year after giving birth.”

She added: “It’s clear that with the right support, it’s possible to thrive in a sporting career as a mother.”

And Molly is determined not to give up.

She said: “A lot of women retire from fighting after they have kids, but I knew I’d get back into it. The plan was always to continue pushing on this path.”

She added: “I want Odin to grow up and see me achieving my dreams, not just me telling him about things that happened before he was born.

“He’s coming along for the journey and gyms are a very good environment for kids to grow up in, being surrounded by people who are trying to better themselves.

“I’m planning to move up to Northampton in the New Year regardless of the situation, because I have to have some self-belief.”

She added: “I’ll make it work. I’ll find somewhere for Odin and I to live and I’ll pick up work, even if we have to stay in a house share at first. It’ll be a starting point for us.

“As long as there’s a roof over our heads and I’m putting food on the table, we’ll be fine.”

Still, Molly holds out hope that she will find a sponsor, saying it will be the answer to her dreams.

She said: “Having a sponsor would mean I could focus entirely on training and not have to worry about working on top of it.

“Until then, I’m saving up as much as I can and have also set up a Go Fund Me page where people can donate to help me.

“Mothers too often aren’t able to follow their dreams due to the lack of support.”

She added: “I’m asking for help because I want to prove the doubters wrong.”

Wendy Hawk, Head of Engagement and Communications at Women In Sport agrees that women in sport can face certain difficulties.

She said: “Women and girls at the elite and grassroots levels of sport encounter multiple barriers to active participation.”

She added: “At the heart of this is the culture that has a long history of being defined by men, as well as deeply rooted institutional bias and gender stereotypes that don’t always demonstrate the value of sport to women and girls.

“At Women In Sport we are challenging these barriers by working with and through sports bodies to ensure that sport is a space that women and girls can thrive and succeed in.

“From understanding the different life stages that women go through, such as puberty, periods, pregnancy and menopause, to leadership in the board room or on the pitch, we aim to ensure that no one is excluded from sport and exercise.”

She added: “Sport, after all, transforms lives and builds a stronger, healthier and happier nation.”

To donate to Molly’s fundraising page, visit: www.gofundme.com/f/help-molly-return-to-fighting