Choosing gloves over guns

DESPITE BEING negatively affected by the coronavirus pandemic, the Sugar Knockout Gym continues to fight against the disease of crime by promoting ‘Gloves over Guns’.

Founder and head coach, Lindel Wallace, said the gym was founded in the Cockburn Gardens community to help steer the youths from engaging in violent activities.

“Couple years ago when I came back (to the community) is ‘bere’ gunman,” Wallace said.

He said he had to help make a change, so he started the gym in 2009 with the ‘Gloves over Guns’ initiative.

He said this is hard for him to maintain because of the harsh effects of the pandemic, but he pushes forward because of the love he has for what he does.

“It (coronavirus) affects me a lot because I don’t want to break the rules,” Wallace said. “I would like for it (boxing) to be my living but I am not making anything from it, I’m just doing it out of the love and to improve the community, myself and younger ones who love the game.”

CHANGING LIVES

Wallace said since the gym was established, it has been responsible for changing many lives, including Wray & Nephew Contender winners Kemahl ‘Hitman’ Russell and Chad Richards.

“I love boxing and I would like to see some more champions come out of it because it is a thing that gets you out of trouble, teaches you discipline,” he said.

Wallace coaches boxers as young as 10 years old, and one such youth who benefits from the teachings of the sport is 17-year-old Raheem Haye.

“It helps me to keep out of danger and not to follow friends, it motivates me in school,” Haye said.

Haye said he has learned discipline and self-control from boxing and encourages others to join the sport, instead of choosing violence.

“Some of my friends are in gangs and I see that it’s not the right thing for me so I chose gloves over guns,” he said. “I don’t want them to be involved with guns because I don’t want them to die like some of my friends.”

CHALLENGES

Funding the operations of the gym, Wallace related, is also a challenge. He said he gets some assistance from the Jamaica Boxing Board and from different corporate companies, but oftentimes he would have to beg for gear and other items. He said he wished the Government would do more for the sport because it could help to save the lives of many youths.

Wallace said many promising young boxers like Haye have unfortunately stopped training because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and he hopes they do not start choosing guns instead of gloves.

He said the coronavirus has also affected the competitiveness of the boxers from the gym because the virus has brought a pause to the staging of boxing events.

However, the community hosts an amateur boxing league called ‘Jump Out Thump Out’ to keep the boxers active and promote peace in the neighbourhood.

“This is to keep the little guys active and keep them out of problem,” said Wallace. “The place will keep calm if they continue with it.”