Secret scenes: Women's boxing
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By Lucy Powell
Posted: Tue Sep 12 2006 
Sparring practice makes perfect ‘I know this’ll sound funny,’ she continues, ‘but the gym is like my church. My mum’s a Catholic, d and she’s very involved with her church. She can’t stand it that I box. I’ll go to Germany and fight in front of thousands of people and it’s not mentioned at home. But I’ll do a 120km run [in stages] for charity and they’re dead proud. It goes in the church newsletter. I tell my mum this is like my church. It’s my community, I feel at home here.’
Laura Saperstein was a successful corporate lawyer when the boxing bug bit her at the age of 31. ‘My boyfriend was a boxer,’ the Australian who now lives in Tufnell Park says. ‘From the first moment I tried it, my body just decided that this was what it wanted to do, and it took my brain with it.’ As with Brown, it is the ‘community and the incredible fitness’ of boxing that she enjoys. Feature continues
AdvertisementSaperstein is currently applying for her pro licence from the BBBofC, having fought and won ten amateur bouts in the last year. She has no regrets about leaving the law to train full-time: ‘Boxing is the most satisfying thing I’ve ever done, though it’s been bloody hard getting the fights I needed to turn pro.’ Fed up with matchmakers not finding her bouts, Saperstein took matters into her own hands and launched a website, boxergirl.net, two years ago, which she hopes will form a database for women boxers.
When asked why boxing’s regulating bodies seem so tepid in their support of women fighters, Cathy Brown answers that it is partly sexism and partly fear. They worry that, were a woman to sustain a serious injury, the press outcry might place the entire sport in jeopardy. Measures introduced to protect women from injury include breast protectors, plastic cups worn inside a sports bra, and a groin protector which, in Saperstein’s words, is ‘worse than useless’. In America, pro fighters also have to sign a legal document before each bout stating that, to the best of their knowledge, they aren’t pregnant at the time.
Saperstein trains in Chris Hall’s London Boxing Academy in Tottenham. Hall is a trainer of the oldest of schools. Every inch of metal, mirror and canvas in his gym is covered in a thin film of dubious moisture. Hip hop blares from an old stereo, and the sound of leather hitting leather fills the air. Above the doorless toilet in the impressively unscrubbed bathroom hangs a sign that reads: ‘If you’re too tired to aim, sit down and pee like a girl.’ But despite the masculine atmosphere, Hall is more than happy to train women: ‘The ones who come in impress me; they’re diligent, they listen, and they can fight.’
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13 comments
Rooney's Boxing Gym in Holyrood Street, London SE1 2EL not only has women's only boxing classes on Tuesday and Thursday evening but also regular sparring for female boxers.
Current house pro Marianne 'Golden Girl' Marston regularly undertakes one-2-one training and sparring sessions. She is also Angel 'The Artist' McKenzies regular sparring partner.
for further info, photos or video on Marianne and the other girls at the gym go to www.rooneysgym.com
Check out my new social networking site for female boxers.
Share training tips, find sparing partners.
Arrange fights.
post footage of your own or someone elses fights.
1on1boxergirl.ning.com
Personally i still think that we as women should just stick two fingers up to mens boxing an start out on are own underground.
Why we keep waiting for then to except use into there world of boxing, i will never understand.
If we started doing it for use, there wouldn't be much they could do about it.
Stop waiting for men to approve of everything we do, an just do it.
@ Snippet....... that is the most sense i've ever hurd from anyone regarding women in general but especially when it comes to womens aggressive nature.
If we didn't already have the will to fight in use, then we simply would not have survived.
The fact that we can and do fight is just human nature, it's got nothing to do with what your sex is.
Women really do NEED places where they can get rid of there aggression, it's just not natural to keep it in.
Biologically for a woman to be aggressive is a very natural thing and in primitive societies would be what enabled her to survive. She would normally be stuck looking after infants and the male would not be anywhere around ( out hunting, reproducing with other females) . Therefore for a female to not be able to fight to protect herself and her young would reduce her chances.
Society today has become very artificial if we are questioning a woman's fighting ability or that it is not innate.
However ladies, consider using chest protection for any full contact sport as there is some medical evidence that there is a moderately increased risk of breast cancer with trauma to the tissue there. (Men after all have groin protection for many sports).
If you want a great women's boxing class, come down to Miguels Boxing Gym in Brixton. Classes are Saturday 1-3. Contact Simone Harvey simonepersonaltrainer@yahoo.com. Check out the gym, real deal boxing gym under railway arches http://www.miguelsboxinggym.com/
All women welcome of all abilities, shapes and sizes, really friendly, positive atmosphere
I am despreat to join a womens boxing club. Anybody got any details for a begginers womens boxing club in london?
I'd be gratefull for any information
I think that if they dont wanna see women fight, then we should start are own private fight clubs.
wouldn't be much thet could do about it then.
Then women could enjoy the fights together in each others company.
I dont understand why we keep looking for the approvale of men all the time.
i have always followed boxing, my uncle and cousins are champions, however as knowledgable as they are about the sport they cannot find me a female boxing gym, or a coach, just wondering if anyone knew of any up north
Womens boxing is here to stay. Trainers and clubs in the UK should back the up and coming fighters or it'll be yet another example of the UK being left behind.
sdsdffsgt
Joyce Carol Oates is definitely not Canadian.
personally,i feel in boxing women take more risk . it could be said that our bodies aren't built for such a "rough and rigid" sport but if they are aware of the risk and consequences then, let them get on with it.