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Kickboxing champion Wes fights bullying

Apr 5 2009 by Neil McKay, Sunday Sun

Wes Fagan, 27, from Dipton, who is a world champion kickboxer

KICKBOXING World champion Wes Fagan looks fearless in the ring as he batters opponents into submission.

The World Federation of Kickboxing (WFK) champ is building a fearsome reputation in the tough sport.

But what his legions of fans and nervous opponents do not realise is that Wes was the victim of bullies at school.

The 27-year-old from Dipton, near Stanley, County Durham, told the Sunday Sun how he would be physically sick before getting onto the school bus, how he was regularly kicked and punched, was chased across fields by school bullies and even marked with cigarette burns.

Now Wes is using his own bitter experiences to run the first North East branch of Martial Arts Against Bullying (Maab) to help youngsters who are bullied at school.

Every week he coaches up to 30 youngsters at gyms in Dipton and nearby Burnopfield and Stanley.

He said: “I used to experience real fear going to school and I had no self confidence.

“I was quite small as a youngster and I used to get picked on.

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