Nos Galan 2024 promises to be the knock-out event of the running season, as Wales’ first female champion boxer, the formidable, inspirational Lauren Price MBE, is revealed as the celebrity mystery runner!
The council is delighted to be able to welcome one of the most decorated, celebrated athletes in Welsh history to Mountain Ash.
Runners and spectators of all ages will be delighted to see Lauren Price MBE on the streets of Mountain Ash tonight. She is the valleys girl who went on to take on the world. She calls herself “the Lucky One”, but we are the ones in luck this evening!
Sheer hard work and determination have seen Lauren achieve her goals, one after the other. She said as a child she wanted to:
- Become a champion kickboxer;
- Play football for Wales and;
- Win gold at the Olympics.
To date, she is the ONLY Welsh boxer to win an Olympic gold medal, plus she has won four world kickboxing championships and collected 52 caps for Wales football. She is a former Olympian of the Year and 2021 Welsh Sports Personality of the Year – and is only just beginning by the looks of it.
Lauren successfully defended her WBA welterweight World champion title just weeks ago and is on track for world title unification at her next fight in the Royal Albert Hall in March 2025.
Lauren is joined this evening by her support runner Ria Burrage-Male, an accomplished sports woman and role model in her own right.
Sport was everything to Ria Burrage-Male from an early age. She was involved in a range of sports but focussed her attention on hockey. She went on to compete in the Commonwealth Games and served as CEO of Welsh Hockey for over five years. She is now a Trustee of Cymru Women Sport. She is also the founder of KIBO coaching and leadership. In addition to all this, Ria is also a business owner. Her podiatry clinic, Aberdare Feet, is based just a few miles from where the Nos Galan Road Races are held.
Cllr Ann Crimmings from the Nos Galan Road Races Committee said: “A huge thank you to Lauren and Ria for joining us tonight. The Nos Galan Road Races are a celebration of sporting achievement and a chance to keep the legend of Guto Nyth Bran, once hailed as tisthe fastest man in the world, alive.
“These women are the epitome of sporting and personal achievement. It will be a thrill for everyone watching and taking part in Nos Galan to have the chance to see these inspirational women tonight. Particularly brilliant as Lauren and Ria are Valleys girls themselves!
“They show just what can be achieved with hard work and dedication and I am sure there are young people in the crowd tonight who will be inspired and, hopefully, continue to apply themselves to whatever they are passionate about in the same way.
“What a wonderful way to mark the end of 2024 and inspire new hope for 2025with two modern day legends helping us to keep the legend and spirit of Nos Galan alive!”
