Tag Archives: 2012 Women’s Olympic Boxing

Women’s Boxing and the Media

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Women’s Boxing and the Media

Queen Underwood ahead of her Pan Am Games fight, Photo: Pat Graham/AP

With large kudos to CNN, ESPNW and even media outlets such at USA Today, women’s boxing has been hitting the media of late — and the perspective has actually been positive.

Case in point has been the skirts issues which has seen a surfeit of pieces in mainstream media running the gamut from BBC to Huffington Post.

There have also been lots of profile pieces of up and coming Olympic hopefuls alongside their sisters on the professional side of the sport, as well as pieces on the world-wide participation of women in boxing from Afghanistan to India to Uganda.

Here are some links to pieces.  Have a read and show your support if you can.  The more we advocate and respond, the greater the opportunity to keep the trend going — and maybe even find women boxing’s bouts back on ESPN, Showtime & HBO.  Hmmm, about time wouldn’t you say??

 

Skirts issue

Drawing a (hem)line in the sand by, Bonnie D. Ford, ESPN

Skirting the issue: boxing’s step backward, Kathryn Bertine, ESPNW

Skirts won’t make women’s boxing any more ‘womanly’, Christie Brennan, USA Today

 

Boxer profiles

Latina Olympic hopefuls (Marlen Esparza), Soledad O’Brien, CNN

Christy Martin a fighter at heart, David Picker, E:60, ESPN

Queen Underwood is fighting for a cause, by Meri-Jo Borzilleri, ESPNW

 

Women’s Boxing – World Wide

Afghan women strike blow for equality, Mike Thomson, BBC

Uganda’s women step into the ring, Nicole Dreon, ESPNW

Women’s Boxing: The brave, the few.

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Women’s Boxing: The Brave, The Few.

Afghan Women Boxing, Credit: AFP/Katherine Haddon

First off a huge shout out to the BBC for their article on my favorite women on the planet the members of the Afghan Women’s Boxing Team.  The article by Mike Thomson, entitled, Afghan Women Strike Blow for Equality, brings focus once again on these remarkable athletes who are no less brave than the denizens of Virgil’s Aeneid, when they don the gloves.  The quote from the Aeneid, a favorite of boxers around the world, not to mention the words printed on the back of every Gleason’s Gym T-shirt are worth repeating in the context of these very courageous young women:

“Now whoever has courage, and a strong and collected spirit in his breast, let him come forward, lace on the gloves and put up his hands.”

There are no words than can truly describe the tenacity and grit of these young women — but I shall extend that to any women who overcomes adversity as a metaphoric taking up of arms.

Think of this.

Think of the violence that women are subjected to by lovers, husbands, fathers, stepfathers, cousins, uncles and so on.

Think of Rola El-Halabi who has had her career taken from her by her stepfather who shot her in the hand, the knee and the foot.

Think of Christy Martin who was left for dead after being stabbed, beaten and shot by her husband.

And yet both these women have arisen.

Both stand tall and proud as beacons of hope for the hopeless.

The young Afghani girls who have taken up the gloves are also symbolic of hope; hope for their Afghani sisters who in many parts of the country are still terribly brutalized; and hope for all women who continue to be at risk for violence and abuse.

Sometimes all it takes is one step — and if in taking that step one finds oneself knocked down, there is always, always, always the next step to take to keep us going. In my view, those young Afghani girls are showing the way of just how to keep those steps coming.

 

 

 

 

Interview with Melinda “La Maravilla” Cooper ahead of Cooper vs. Velez II!

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Interview with Melinda “La Maravilla” Cooper ahead of Cooper vs. Velez II!

Melinda “La Maravilla” Cooper  (21-1, 11-KOs) is hungry — and she wants her IBF Superbantamweight Title back.  She is set to meet Puerto Rican fighter Ada Velez (19-3-3, 6-KOs) in a rematch and in what promises to be a tough, taut battle, La Maravilla and Velez will meet for a ten-round championship fight on Sunday, November 20, 2011 at the Texas Station Gambling House and Hotel in Cooper’s hometown of Las Vegas. Given her popularity, it is expected that the bout will be fought in front of a sell-out crowd — who are equally as hungry to see her back in the ring.

Melinda "La Maravilla" Cooper (r) vs. Ada Velez

La Maravilla, 26 is known as a tough savvy boxer and is considered one of the best fighters in women’s boxing today. Both women met last March in Costa Rica when Velez took the belt by a split decision, 96-94, 96-94, 94-96. That outcome, which many believed was a poor decision at best certainly stunned Cooper and her team, but ever the champion, Cooper is grateful for the rematch and is looking forward to taking the belt back. Neither fighter has been in the ring since their outing in March, but Cooper feels confident that she is ready.

Melinda graciously agreed to take time from her busy training schedule to answer a few emailed questions. This is what she had to say!

How are you feeling about meeting Ada Velez for the IBF Female Super Bantamweight Title?

>>>I feel amazing about the upcoming match between Ada and I. I’ve been training hard and taking Genesis Sports Nutrition to ensure my body is recovering properly. I’m ready; it is going to be a great fight!

Your bout in March resulted in a split decision with two judges scoring it 96-94 for Ada and one judge scoring it 96-94 for you. Did that factor into setting up the rematch?
>>>Undoubtedly!
You had a perfect 21-0 record coming into your match back in March, how has that affected you and your training coming into this bout?
>>>It has made me hungrier!
You are considered one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world, at 26 you are also relatively young given that there are a lot of elite women fighters still in the game well into their 30’s, what’s next for you?
>>>After I win the IBF title and with the support of my sponsors: Silver Nugget, Lucky Club and Opera House, I plan to move down in weight to 118 and fight for a title. I would also like to fight at a couple of different weight classes for world titles.
Most of your bouts have been in the United States — although your three most recent bouts have been out of the country in Costa Rica and Mexico. Do you feel you will increasingly need to fight out of the country?
>>>No I do not feel I will need to fight out of the country to get competitive fights. I believe if promoters put more female bouts on in the U.S. it would reduce the need to fight abroad.
In thinking about women’s boxing in general, what do you project for the sport in the coming years?
>>>I feel the recent inclusion of women’s boxing into the Olympics will only serve to bring more (much deserved) positive attention to the sport from those who are already familiar with it; as well as making it more attractive to mainstream audiences.
Videos!
Melinda Cooper sparring with Laura Serrano prepping for her upcoming fight:

Melinda Cooper boxing highlights video

In celebration of the art of boxing.

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In celebration of the art of boxing.

Mischa and Kristina

My schedule has been hectic and fraught with the conflicting needs of family, job and thesis writing, so getting to the gym yesterday felt triumphant.

Lennox Blackmore and I had miscued on our time which meant I did most of my work out on my own starting off with my usual four round sets: shadow boxing, heavy bag, double-ended bag and speed bag.  When Len arrived, I pulled out four more on the pads working my jab-jab-right combination plus the right-left dig, left hook combo.  My last was to work my way through 80 ragged sit ups — but they did count.

The point of writing about it is less to “crow” about boxing for a solid hour — and more about the work itself and the work of everyone in the gym.  ‘Talk about inspiring, everyone and I mean every last person was pushing themselves and hard.  That meant young kids, older kids, men and women of a “certain age” and everyone in between, not to mention the boxers sparring with speed and tartness prepping for upcoming bouts!

It got me to thinking that with all the controversies of late whether it’s bad refereeing, bad judging, obnoxious fighters mouthing off unnecessarily or the specter of female athletes wearing short mini skirts in their debut at the 2012 Olympics, the other side of boxing, the miraculous side is all the time spent in the gym, working.

That is what boxing is, isn’t it? At its essence? The magic of aligning the mind and the body to perfect exacting movements so that when a boxer enters the ring there is an opportunity to soar as an improvisational artist at the height of his or her craft.

As with jazz musicians who spend hours a day practicing scales and sonorous trills to keep their lips, fingers, hands, arms, legs and every other part of the body in condition, so does a boxer spend hours at a time perfecting the body and the subtle movements necessary to ply the art.

That doesn’t only mean round after round of throwing the intricate combinations, but understanding the subtleties of the pax de deux — after all, boxing is not a solo sport, but an intricate dance. No tag team, it is a one-on-one battle of skills, stamina, ring knowledge and what we all call heart. It is also performance art as there is that extra shot of adrenaline that happens precisely because it is a competition on a stage bounded by the four sides of the storied boxing ring.

And that is part of it — despite the hype and the crappy stuff that seems to accompany the professional side of boxing and even the amateur side; the ring itself is an arena of magic. It is the place where all of those hours of gym work and road work and mental work thinking about boxing gets played out in the brief snippets of time between the bells.

I know that boxing can be a heartbreaker — as terrible and cruel as any indifferent lover, but it is also a place of work and pride that at the end of the day every practitioner can feel triumphant about.

So yes, while the split decision of the latest Manny Pacquiao versus Juan Manuel Marquez championship bout may feel like ashes in the throat to some, we should also celebrate the hard work of boxing, it is after all what brought those two remarkable athletes into the ring in the first place.

USA Boxing’s 2nd Women’s Int’l Dual Series!!!

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>>>UPDATE>>>

Check out boxing live!  From 6:00 PM ET each evening! www.oxnardpalboxing.com.

USA Boxing’s 2nd Women’s Int’l Dual Series!!!

Womens_international_poster

The second annual Women’s International Dual Series will be held from November 15 – 18, 2011 in Oxnard, California.  Given that the upcoming debut of women’s boxing in the 2012 Olympics, this years women’s boxing boxing series should be particularly memorable!

The event will host elite amateur boxers from six nations in the three Olympic weight classes (Flyweight-112 lbs, Lightweight-132 lbs and Middleweight-165 lbs) and will include fighters from Mexico, Canada, Russia, Germany and Poland, and four squads from the United States.  It should be noted that all 12 of the fighters representing the U. S. have qualified for the first-ever  trials for the U. S. Olympic Team tentatively scheduled for February of 2012.

This gives everyone the opportunity to cheer for these fabulous athletes who have worked so hard to get this far!

Following on the heals of the recently contested Pan American Games and European Women’s Boxing championships, the Dual Series competition will be a wonderful opportunity for these incredible fighters to further hone their skills ahead of next years Olympics.

The tournament itself will be a round-robin style competition giving each boxer an opportunity to face a different opponent on each day of the competition — with events starting at 6:00 PM each evening.

Tickets are available at the door and are $10 per day for adults and $5 for kids, 6-17. Ringside seats can purchased for $20 and children under five will be admitted free. For more information, go to www.oxnardpalboxing.com.

The roster for the games as published by USA Boxing is as follows!

U.S. Rosters

Red Team One

112 lbs: Poula Estrada, Palmdale, Calif.

132 lbs: N’yteeyah Sherman, Barberton, Ohio

165 lbs: Alyssa Defazio, Wittman, Ariz.
Coach: Bruce Kawano, Pearl City, Hawaii

Coach: Anthony Huizar, Whittier, Calif.

Red Team Two

112 lbs: Christina Cruz, New York, N.Y.

132 lbs: Mikaela Mayer, Los Angeles, Calif.

165 lbs: Tika Hemingway, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Coach: Gloria Peek, Norfolk, Va.

Coach: Jose Banales, Las Vegas, Nev.

Blue Team One

112 lbs: Cynthia Moreno, Phoenix, Ariz.

132 lbs: Tiara Brown, Lehigh Acres, Fla.

165 lbs: Tiffanie Ward, Hacienda Heights, Calif.

Coach: Rocky Garza, Oxnard, Calif.

Coach: Vernon Lee, San Diego, Calif.

Blue Team Two

112 lbs: Tyrieshia Douglas, Baltimore, Md.

132 lbs: Lisa Porter, Valley Village, Calif.

165 lbs: Franchon Crews, Baltimore, Md.

Coach: Christy Halbert, Nashville, Tenn.

Coach: Fausto de la Torre, Pasadena, Calif.

International Rosters

Mexico
112 lbs: Silvia Torres
132 lbs: Cinthya Robles
165 lbs: Alma Ibarra

Poland 
Flyweights/112 lbs
Karolina Michalczuk
Sandra Drabik

Lightweight/132 lbs
Karolina Graczyk
Sandra Kruk

Middleweight/165 lbs
Lidia Fidura
Katarzyna Furmaniak

Canada
TBD

Russia
112 lbs: Elena Savelyeva
132 lbs: Sofya Ochigava
165 lbs: Nadezhda Torlopova

Germany
112 lbs: Azize Nimani
132 lbs: Julia Irmen

Chevelle Hallback fights Myriam Lamare for IBF Jr. Welterweight Title!

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>>>UPDATE>>>

Lamare v. Hallback, 11.5.2011, Credit: Denis Boulanger / Presse Sports

Myriam Lamare won a decisive 10-round decision over Chevelle Hallback to capture the vacant IBF Jr. Welterweight Title tonight at the Palais des Sports de Toulon, in Toulon, France.  The judges scored the bout 99-91, 98-92, 96-94.

Myriam Lamare, IBF Jr. Welterweight Champion, Credit: Denis Boulanger / Presse Sports

Chevelle Hallback fights Myriam Lamare for IBF Jr. Welterweight Title!

Fighting powerhouse Chevelle “Fists of Steel” Hallback (28-7-2, 11-KOs) will be battling France’s own Myriam Lamare (19-3, 10-KOs) for the vacant IBF Jr. Welterweight championship in what is sure to be a fantastic night of boxing!

They will fight on November 5, 2011 (tonight) at the Palais des Sports de Toulon, in Toulon, France.

As with many American elite female fighters, Hallback will be fighting overseas in what she hopes will be the first step towards winning a rematch against Cecilia Braehkus following her loss to her in May 2011.

Hallback has been busy in the interim having started the Fists of Steel Boxing Academy this past summer in Tampa, Florida.

Women’s Boxing: This is what women’s Olympic boxing comes down to … skirts!?!

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Women’s Boxing:  This is what Women’s Olympic boxing comes down to … skirts!?!

BBC Sports has a piece entitled, Women’s boxing split as governing body suggests skirts, they report on the recommendation made last year by the AIBA that women wear skirts in the ring at international competitions. Apparently this reared its head at the recently completed European Competitions with some nations opining that it makes a more “womanly impression.”

I’m sorry for the venom I’m about to spew but, WTF???

Female boxers are doing everything they can to get the recognition they deserve just to get in the ring, never mind have fair matches, get media coverage and opportunities to have their athleticism legitimized, and this is what the AIBA came up with as their great contribution!  Women should wear skirts in competition at the Olympics!!!

Isn’t it bad enough that the rounds are limited to two minutes instead of three???

Or the fact that there are only three weight classes in the Olympics in 2012???

As far as I’m concerned this is just BULLSH*T!!!

Have a read and spew.

Maybe I’m too damned old to think the notion of “optional” has meaning — as far as I’m concerned putting a woman in a mini-skirt smacks of nothing more than sexism pure and simple.  And heck, if a woman wants to wear a skirt in the ring great, and to that end, plenty of men wear them, but right, when a man wears a skirt in the ring it’s considered “gladiatorial.”

Give us a break already!

PS – Be sure and check out Michael Rivest’s exceptional article entitled A Conversation with Dr. C.K. Wu – More on Warriors in Skirts. 

Women’s Boxing: Pan Am Games & Olympic Trials!

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>>>UPDATE >>>

Girlboxing is sorry to report that Franchon Crews  lost her quarter-final bout tonight, however, she fought a tough, close fight and deserves our profound thanks and applause for all of her incredible efforts!  Three cheers for Franchon Crews!!!

Women’s Boxing: Pan Am Games & Olympic Trials!

Queen Underwood ahead of her Pan Am Games fight, Photo: Pat Graham/AP

While it is true that both Christina Cruz and Queen Underwood endured tough, tough close bouts which found them on the losing end of the quarter-finals at the 2011 Pan Am Games, their accomplishments must be applauded loudly and often as we fete two of the three first time USA Boxing participants in Women’s Boxing at the Games!

Girlboxing for one sends out a HUGE shout out to these formidable athletes with the hope that they will both shake off their losses and come back strong at the up coming first-ever Olympic Trials for Women’s Boxing ahead of the London 2012 Olympic Games!

Up next, Franchon Crews in her quarter-final bout against Canada’s Mary Spencer on October 23rd (later today)!

BTW, here’s the link to Franchon’s very fun blog post from USA Boxing.

If you want to watch the Pan American Games Live click here!

The Olympic Trials Participants are as follows!!!  

The three winners will then compete in the sole international Olympic qualifier, the Women’s World Championships, scheduled to run from May 21-June 3 in Qinhuangdao, China.

U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Women’s Boxing Qualified Athletes

Flyweight/112 lbs

1. Christina Cruz, New York, N.Y. (Pan American Games representative)
2. Marlen Esparza, Houston, Texas (USA Boxing National Championships)
3. Tyrieshia Douglas, Baltimore, Md. (USA Boxing National Championships)
4. Poula Estrada, Palmdale, Calif. (USA Boxing Championships)
5. Cynthia Moreno, Phoenix, Ariz. (Golden Gloves Championships)
6. Virginia Fuchs, Kemah, Texas (National PAL Championships)
7. Alex Love, Monroe, Wash. (National PAL Championships)
8. Taversha Norwood, Marietta, Ga. (National PAL Championships)

Lightweight/132 lbs

1. Queen Underwood, Seattle, Wash. (Pan American Games representative)
2. Tiara Brown, Lehigh, Fla. (USA Boxing National Championships)
3. Lisa Porter, Northridge, Calif. (USA Boxing National Championships)
4. N’yteeyah Sherman, Barberton, Ohio (USA Boxing National Championships)
5. Mikaela Mayer, Los Angeles, Calif. (Golden Gloves Championships)
6. Patricia Manuel Long Beach, Calif. (National PAL Championships)
7. Bertha Aracil, Yonkers, N.Y. (National PAL Championships)
8. Asia Stevenson, Washington DC (National PAL Championships)

Middleweight/165 lbs

1. Franchon Crews, Baltimore, Md. (Pan American Games representative
2. Alyssa DeFazio, Peoria, Ariz. (USA Boxing National Championships)
3. Tika Hemingway, Pittsburgh, Pa. (USA Boxing National Championships)
4. Tiffanie Ward, Hacienda Heights, Calif. (USA Boxing National Championships)
5. Tiffanie Hearn, Louisville, Ky. (Golden Gloves Championships)
6. Claressa Shields, Flint, Mich. (National PAL Championships)
7. Andrecia Wasson, Centerline, Mich. (National PAL Championships)
8. Raquel Miller, San Francisco, Calif. (National PAL Championships)

America’s boxing women “got games”!

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America’s boxing women “got games”!

First off, the 2011 National PAL results are as follows with three more women added to the roster of female boxers eligible for the first ever women’s Olympic Trials this coming February.  Girlboxing sends a huge shout-out to these incredible athletes — even as we extend our thoughts and prayers to Ishika Lay and her family.

Female
106 lbs: Amy Sowers dec. Colleen Loo, 28-12
112 lbs: Tyrieshia Douglas dec. Virginia Fuchs, 22-12 (Olympic Weight)
119 lbs: Amanda Pavone dec. Araceli Tinoco, 19-14
125 lbs: Shane Ruelas dec. Kristie Simmons, 21-18
132 lbs: N’yteeyah Sherman dec. Patricia Manuel, 21-20 (Olympic Weight)
165 lbs: Claressa Shields dec. Andrecia Wasson, 31-13 (Olympic Weight)
178 lbs: Tyler Lord Wilder stopped Charnita Johnson, RSC-3
In a season of firsts, the Women’s USA Boxing Team who have qualified to participate in the Pan American Games are already hard at work at the Pan American Games Training Camp in Houston, Texas.  The training camp will run through October 14th, ahead of the start of this year’s Pan Am Games in Guadalajara, Mexico beginning on October 17th!
Christina Cruz, New York, NY  (112 Weight Class)
Queen Underwood, Seattle, WA (132 Weight Class)
Franchon Crews, Baltimore, MD (165 Weight Class)

Girlboxing on the Radio!

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>>>Update>>>

Here’s a link to the audio on YouTube! 

Girlboxing on the Radio!

Girlboxing will be a guest on the Sports & Courts radio program this morning running from 10:00 – 11:00 AM ET.   The show will be aired on 1010XL – Jax Sports Radio, part of the ESPN radio network.

Tune in if you can, we’ll be talking about the challenges facing Women’s Boxing in the run up to the debut of the sport at the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London. We’ll also be discussing boxer Ishika Lay’s recent collapse at the 2011 PAL Championships in Toledo, Ohio.  Ishika remains in critical condition — and we’ll be hearing an update on her condition as well as talking about the challenges of keeping safe in the ring.

The link is here:  1010XL Radio  (Once on the site, click on the Listen Live button on the Right side of the screen.)

Sports & Courts Radio Show is the brain child of John M. Phillips a Jacksonville, Florida based attorney with a keen interest in sports, boxing and advocacy for athletes.  His background includes groundbreaking work in the field of traumatic brain injuries.  Website links are here:  Facebook and Sports & Courts Website

Girlboxing: One Year On!

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Girlboxing: One Year On!

Today marks the one year anniversary of the Girlboxing blog.

As of this piece, that means a total of 335 posts and according to the stats, 90,316 total views.  I find that to be stunning and thank Girlboxing readers for all of your incredible support.

Not only has writing Girlboxing given me the opportunity to add my voice to the conversation about women’s boxing, but it has aided me as I have gotten myself back into the ring.  Just today I had the joy of boxing Lennox Blackmore through four rounds of sparring — mind you getting tagged much of way by straight rights and left hooks, but at least I managed to get out of the way a little more than last week and even managed to get in a few shots of my own plus some counter punching.

As with boxing, writing is a labor of process and discovery that demands a level of truth.  What Girlboxing has given me is the opportunity to discover both — something that is reaffirmed in one way or another every day.  It is hard for me to express just how much this experience has meant to me or how much the interaction with Girlboxing readers has come to mean.  I feel as if I have made some incredible friends — and look forward to continuing the dialogue.

One more thing, I know that my columns have been a bit more scant that usual lately.  Mostly I am up to my “eyeballs” in regular work stuff plus writing my thesis for my master’s degree.  I will, however, try to keep to a minimum of four days a week and more when I can.

Otherwise, thank you all again for dropping by!

All the best,

Malissa Smith

Girlboxer!

Women’s Boxing Olympic Fever!

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Women’s Boxing Olympic Fever!

The last couple of weeks have been amazing for Women’s Boxing in the United States as mainstream media has begun to pick up on the fact that we’ll actually be fielding a strong women’s team next summer in London.

The momentum will keep building too with the last round of competition before the February 2012 Women’s Olympic Trials coming up next week in Toledo, Ohio at the 2011 National PAL Championships.

The last three slots in each of the Olympic weight classes (112 lbs, 132 lbs, and 155 lbs.) will be selected, and it’s where boxers such as Cleveland’s own Cashmere Jackson will be duking it out to gain the opportunity to pursue their dreams of Olympic Gold.

Meanwhile, the fever pitch continues as seen in this fabulous ESPN piece on New Yorker, Christina Cruz’s dreams of not only winning gold as a member of the first Women’s boxing team to represent the United States at the Pan Am Games, but in her pursuit of the podium at next summer’s Olympic Games

If you have done so already, also check out Soledad O’Brien’s wonderful piece on Marlen Esparza that continues on October 1st on CNN. It is truly inspirational.

Here is the link to the teaser:

http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/09/13/latina.boxer.esparza/index.html

My dinner with Mischa Merz!

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My dinner with Mischa Merz!

Mischa Merz

Former Austrialian national champion Mischa Merz and author of the book, The Sweetest Thing: A Boxer’s Memoir has come to New York to meet up with old friends and promote her book.  She’ll be reading a chapter tonight (September 8th) at the Sidewalk Cafe (94 Avenue A @ 6th Street) in the East Village beginning at 6:30 PM.

Mischa will also be reading in at her Bookstore Boxing event along with author Binnie Klien, documentary filmmaker, Leyla Leidecker and for the “main event” a women’s boxing exhibition featuring WBC Super Bantamweight World Champion Alicia Ashley and 2008 Golden Glove winner Camille Currie.  The event will be held at BookCourt  (163 Court Street, Brooklyn, NY) on Sunday, September 11th beginning at 7:00 PM.

Last night, I had the opportunity to meet up with Mischa at Gleason’s Gym and after a workout we headed over to Rice Restaurant on Washington Street for some well deserved dinner!

Generous with her time as always, Mischa talked about the process of writing her book noting that much of the book “wrote itself” because as she put it, “I have the luxury of this great reality I can write about.”

For those Girlboxing readers who have not read Mischa’s book, it is a personal journey through the world of women’s boxing in the United States at a particular place and time — and ends with an epilogue about the  2010 Women’s World Championships in Barbados.

In talking about how she came up with the concept for the book she wanted to write a contemporary history of women’s boxing so that the flashes of brilliance found in such fighters as Bonnie Canino wouldn’t be forgotten.  “In another five or ten years it’ll be like trying to dig out people that are just lost,” she said.

This germ of an idea expanded to become a more personal journey through the story, and as she says, a lived experienced. “The book was more about spending time with people and training with people I’d admired from a distance,” adding that in writing the book, “it was a matter of producing, it was a matter of tying it up.  It was a very tight deadline I had 6 months to write it and live it.  I spent 5 weeks here fighting, writing up notes every night in cafes about what was happening and then from August to December I had to turn it into a manuscript.”

The book is also a sojourn through a personal passion best stated in the preface to her book:

My relationship with boxing has been like one you would have with another human being.  I have loathed it and adored it.  It has both invaded my dreams and turned my stomach.  I have resolved to reduce its significance in my life only to see my passionf or it intensify.  Boxing is my man. Even my husband will tell you so. (ix)

Sitting across a dinner table, Mischa is no less passionate about the sport. Talking about the 2010 Women’s World Championships in Barbados she said, “Barbados really was a dramatic seismic shift in my mind.  It was like every where you looked the women boxers were really great: explosive, technical, hitting hard.  Many women don’t know that they can be much more explosive, but these women were amazing. There were 300 or so and they were fighters, not just women, but great fighters.”

When Mischa isn’t taking fights or working as a boxing trainer in Melbourne, Australia, she writes.

“As a journalist, I continue to write about women’s boxing, but I like to write about other things as well, not get stuck too much.  I’ve discovered another potential book, but it’s much more Australian.  It’s about an aboriginal boxing gym, in Melbourne.  It’s history is actually connected to the Black Panthers movement here, and the [American]  civil rights movement, was its inpsiration.  That movement has been completely derailed in Australia. The gym has got the boxing at its core, but the ripples go beyond. It’ll be more of a historical book, but again, I may need to write it in the same way, by being inside.”

Having spent a lovely evening talking about boxing – not to mention a fabulous meal, we headed off in our separate directions.  If you can make it through the water logged streets of New York, do try and catch her reading tonight @ the Sidewalk Cafe and for you Brooklynites (or folks who just love a great time), do try and make it BookCourt on Sunday evening.  Otherwise, R-E-A-D Mischa’s book, its great!

 

Women’s Boxing: One year to go till Olympic Glory!

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Women’s Boxing: One year to go till Olympic Glory!

I don’t remember a time when I didn’t like boxing.  My boxing hero was Mohammad Ali — and I have vivid memories of watching his fights on television, not to mention his running diatribes with Howard Cosell. And sure, that was all “back in the day” — but that was also history unfolding from Ali’s decision to embrace Islam on through refusing induction in the Army.  What resonated was Ali smiling for the camera and saying, “I’m so pretty.”  Those were powerful words for a boxer and a black man in America at that time — and frankly any time — upending notions of beauty, the ferosity of the ring, and the notion that there were limits on how high a human being could soar.

What I found was inspiration. I wanted to be him. Not so much as a boxer per se, but as a person that could take life and make it my own as an act of courage.

In thinking about the young women working their hearts out in the ring in preparation for next summer’s Olympics, I think of Ali. As a young 18 year old, he won Gold as a light heavyweight in the Rome Olympics and by the age of 28 had became an iconic figure in American history.  “The Greatest” changed the world.

The future Olympians who ply the boards through countless hours of hard work in the gym show feats of courage every time they step into the ring — and while they may not be as earth shattering as Ali, those acts of hard work are no less important to the scheme of things, not to mention that we don’t yet know just where any of these women will end up in the years to come.

Given that we’ve hit the one year mark — the main stream press has started to focus in on these women and their ambition, and as a salute to our future Olympic heros, here’s a smattering from around the web.

Queen Underwood (USA) – USA Today has a piece out entitled Queen Underwood chases glory in the boxing ring that talks about Queen’s dreams of winning Olympic gold.

Mary Kom (India) – Called “Magnificent Mary”, Kom is a five-time gold medal winner who is currently training with the Indian men’s team in pursuit of Olympic gold as noted in the Times of India article, Mary Kom trains with men’s team’s foreign coach.

Katie Taylor (Ireland) – Talk about courage in the ring, Katie Taylor is a fearless competitor having just won her 38th victory in a row with her gold medal victory in the European Union championships.  She is also an iconic figure of brilliance in action in her native Ireland as the Irish Times piece ‘Perfect fight’ ends with European Title attests.

There are countless other Olympic hopefuls with countless other dreams of rising to the podium — and what we can do is support those dreams with our unwavering passion for the sport we love.

Going for the gold, junior style: yep it’s Jr. Olympic Nationals time again!

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Going for the gold, junior style: yep it’s Jr. Olympic Nationals time again!

Starting on August 2nd and running through August 5th, the 2011 Junior Olympic National Championships will be held in at the Mobile Civic Center in Mobile, Alabama.  Long considered a showcase for future for future Olympians and World Champions among male boxers, this year’s female boxers can set their sites on gaining a berth in 2016!

The preliminary bouts are set to begin on the first day of competition, with the quarterfinals set for Wednesday, August 3rd, semifinals on Thursday, August 4th and the championship round bouts set for Friday, August 5th in all of the weight divisions.

The roster of young women set to compete includes weight classes from 90 lbs. on through 176 lbs. Regardless of weight class, however, these young future stars deserve our support!

BTW, if you plan on being in Mobile between July 31st and August 5th you can not only catch the 2011 Jr. Olympic National Championships, but the Men’s Olympic Trials as well.  Here’s a link for tickets to the events at the Mobile Civic Center.
For a taste of the level of competition to be enjoyed here’s video from the 2009 125 lb. Jr. Olympic National Championship finals between Flora Yanes and Chazette Szu.:
Roster of Female Athletes!
90 lbs
Arlene Villalobus, Whittier, Calif.
101 lbs
Monica Vanpelt, Toledo, Ohio
Dominique Siller, Abilene, Texas
Christina Mirabal, Albuquerque, N.M.
106 lbs
Enovi Molina, Scotch Plains, N.J.
Haneefa Muhammed, Lexington, Ky.
Brittany Salas, Amarillo, Texas
Marisol Lopez, Avenal, Calif.
110 lbs
Ruby Suarez, Detroit, Mich.
Kianna Richardson, Fort Worth, Texas
Ariana Garcia, Albuquerque, N.M.
Saira Guiterrez, Sacramento, Calif.
Miranda Burkett, Caldwell, Idaho
Emily Downs, Pensacola, Fla.
114 lbs
Jasmine Hampton, Ann Arbor, Mich.
Angelica Herrera, Grand Prairie, Texas
Ayanna Vasquez, Las Cruces, N.M.
Serena Rojas, Fresno, Calif.
Raynesia O’neal, Washington D.C.
119 lbs
Shante Higgs, Detroit, Mich.
Rianna Rios, Alice, Texas
Dacia Jacquez, Bloomfield, N.M.
Arianna Makes Him First, Little Eagle, S.D.
Evevlyn Borja, Fresno, Calif.
125 lbs
Amber Blumenfeld, Springfield, Mass.
Christina Farwick, Cincinnati, Ohio
Kristal Gonzales, San Antonio, Texas
Brooklyn Brenden, East Helena, Mont.
Jasmin Jones, Vacaville, Calif.
Laura Garfias, Cornelius, Ore.
132 lbs
Rashida Ellis, St. Lynn, Mass.
Nakarri Jones, Tampa, Fla.
Dezaree Negrete, Calumet City, Ill.
Isabella Nieves, Kenosha, Wis.
Nancy Gutierrez, Sacramento, Calif.
Liano Rico, San Bernardino, Calif.
138 lbs
Jessica Alvarez, Lincoln Park, Mich.
Martisa Guillen, Reno, Calif.
145 lbs
Courtney Mink, Monroe, Mich.
Marlisa Stamps, Milwaukee, Wis.
Miceala Fox, McLaughlin, S.D.
Kiera Bell, Washington, D.C.
154 lbs
Clarissa Shields, Flint, Mich.
Breanna Rautio, Rocker, Mont.
Kiera Bell, Washington D.C.
165 lbs
Taylor Carroll, Monroe, Mich.
176 lbs
Dariahn Williams, Lexington, Ky.