A Sport That Needs To Have Clean Hands

Boxing has a reputation for being a dirty sport.  I believe that is one of the main reasons why the sport is no longer mentioned in the same breath as football, basketball, and baseball.  Many Hollywood movies have shown the underside of boxing - Requiem For A Heavyweight, The Set-Up, the Rocky series, etc.  They are not far off the mark when it comes to professional boxing.  But amateur boxing doesn't have clean hands, either. 

A few years ago, there was a scandal involving how the Chicago Golden Gloves was being run. Apparently, issues had been going on for a long time.  Situations have since been corrected but for a time, it appeared that the franchise was in danger of permanently being put on ice.  That would have delivered a hard blow to many amateur fighters, especially those who had their eyes on moving on to the Olympics and/or a professional boxing career. 

Often, I hear stories about sketchy moves that take place in amateur gyms here and elsewhere around the USA.  Someone told me that they took offense that several individuals claiming to be boxing coaches were allegedly hanging around in an amateur gym trying to recruit people to fight in what appeared to be an unsanctioned, underground show.  Underground shows, or smokers as they are sometimes referred to, are illegal.  Fighters who participate in such shows run the risk of being seriously hurt.  Several years ago, a female amateur boxer was paired with a professional female boxer during such a show.  I believe it took place in New York City.  The amateur boxing took a beating that left them with permanent brain damage. 

Sooner or later, coaches, fighters, officials, parents, and guardians, as well as others dealing cards from under the deck where boxing is concerned will get caught.  However, people tend to get away with stuff for long periods of time.  When the actions are finally exposed, major damage has already been done. It just gives more ammunition to those who constantly push for boxing to be banned altogether.  The sport also further gets pushed into the status of a niche sport, supported by a few devotees, but not receiving the resources, attention, endorsements, etc., of other sports that are seen as more "acceptable". 

I don't put up with much so I run a clean gym.  It's better, in the long run, to do that for the fighters as well as for my conscious.