Williams given a chance to test himself in Finland and Romania

Williams was advised by GB head coach Rob McCracken a couple of weeks ago that he would get an opportunity to impress in international tournaments and the first of those sees him travelling to Helsinki, Finland on March 9 for the 37th edition of the Bee-Gee Cup.

Williams should pick up two contest over the three days at the Urheilutalo Sport Hall before moving on to Romania for the European Under-22 Championships which get under way on March 24.

The Coventry University teenager is then expected to be seeded for the Senior ABAs which will see him entering the tournament at the quarter-final stage.

A recent graduate to the full-time Great Britain ranks, Williams has been tipped to continue his rise by an astute judge, according to his coach in Leamington, Edwin Cleary.

“I met with Richie Woodall recently, he’s one of the coaches at GB and he had nothing but praise for Lewis,” said Cleary.

“ He said he thought Lewis was good until he found out Lewis was only 19.

“He said Lewis is very special and believes he can go all the way.”

Williams has been stepping up his preparations for the Bee-Gee Cup by sparring New Zealand’s Commonwealth Games gold medallist David Nyika and sessions in Great Britain’s altitude chamber in Sheffield.

Forced to box on the pads under the watchful eye of two coaches, Williams described it as “one of the hardest things he’s done”.

However, Cleary said Williams would not be the only beneficiary of his tough workouts with the Great Britain squad.

“We are all learning from his experiences at GB,” said Cleary.

“It’s great when he’s back having him around the gym.

“All the boxers and coaches are really benefiting from how he’s been trained and how he looks after himself now.

“It’s a real bonus for everyone.”