Boxing_News__November_24_2017

AMATEURS
A GALA OF BOXING
Inspirational event is set for November 25 at the Tottenham Community Sports Centre, writes John Dennen
ON Saturday November 25 a gala
of female boxing is taking place at
the Tottenham Community Sports
Centre, 759 High Road, London,
N17 8AD. The boxing starts at 2pm.
The event, which has a mammoth
30 bouts expected, brings teams
together from different regions
across the country to give female
boxers competitive opportunity. The
inaugural ‘This Girl Can Box’ show
took place last year and the hope
is to make it an annual occurrence.
“Girls are hard to match, it’s like
having a flyweight or a superheavyweight
in your gym, you’ve got
to do a little bit more to travel and
get them the bouts that they need,”
said organiser Terri Kelly. “This gives
them a fantastic opportunity to get
on the same show.”
“We needed to link up round
the country and help each other
for development,” she continued.
“It’s up to us to create more
opportunities to box. You need
to box to develop your skills. So I
thought I’d match it and do it. This
time I’m hoping to raise a bit of
revenue. If we can do it and raise
some funds and try and get some
sponsors, maybe next time what
we could do is invite a team from
Ireland or a team from Sweden,
if we had the money there to put
them up in a hotel, so it’s not a
burden for one club.”
On the show there will be a
Southern Area title belt bout
between Haringey’s Amy Andrew
and Charlie Hamm from Kent
Gloves. Deayndre Allen has moved
up from 64kgs to welterweight and
will box Laura Stevens, from Far
Cotton. Ramla Ali, Nemesis, is due
to box Nikki Arthur from Manx
and Sarah Dunne will box Xian
Blackman Prince.
“It ranges. There’s a few skills
bouts on there, Development
bouts, Elites who don’t box
enough,” Terri said. “As they have
more and more bouts it gets harder
to match them and I don’t want
them just sitting around.”
“The idea is that each region has
squads, it’s supposed to encourage
that,” she added. “It’s much nicer if
it’s got a squad feel about it.
“It’s to make it more of a
celebration or a gala of boxing. It
has a really nice feeling about it
and just have some inspirational
women there as well.
“There’s not enough happening.
AMBITIOUS:
Andrew [centre]
with Terri Kelly
[right] and Brian
John [left]
We can’t keep sitting and waiting.
I’ve never been one to sit and
wait for anything. We’re all quite
proactive and thinking what can
we do. That’s fed through to this as
well. What can we do, rather than
keep moaning.
“People really enjoy it. The whole
day’s a nice atmosphere and there’s
nothing more inspirational than
seeing 60 other female boxers all
doing what you love doing.”
‘WE CAN’T KEEP SITTING AND WAITING. WE’RE QUITE
PROACTIVE, THINKING WHAT CAN WE DO’
BACK IN ANGERED
Haringey return to Sweden
FOR the first time in eight years
Haringey Police Community Boxing
Club returned to the Angered Box
Cup in Sweden, from November
3-5. Angered initially inspired
them to set up the Haringey Box
Cup, which has now been running
successfully in London for a decade.
Stephen Makolo and Amy
Andrew both won gold medals,
while Claudia Wilmot Smith
picked up a silver. “[Andrew] has
got to start thinking about the Elites
now,” Terri Kelly said. “She’s looking
to do as much as she can, she’s very
ambitious.”
Haringey’s Numan Hussein had
a tough bout with Danish boxer
Frederik Lundgaard Jensen,
but will learn plenty from the
experience.
Deayndre Allen, shaking off
ring rust, also suffered a defeat. But
Kelly points out, “The following
day she sparred [an experienced
international] from Denmark and
she was outstanding. I thought
why couldn’t you box like that
the day before? That girl’s had 75
bouts. Unfortunately it happens.”
42 l BOXING NEWS l NOVEMBER 23, 2017 www.boxingnewsonline.net