One look at the inside of the national boxing gym, and there's no wonder why the amateur boxing program in the country is in shambles. There has been no power in the gym for over a year, the floors and ring canvas are cranky and unstable, there are cracks in the wall and the boxing equipment needs work... lots of work. As a result, there has been little or no activity at the gym during peak hours. No national tournaments have been staged at that venue for the year, and a number of promising young boxers are reportedly losing interest.
Quite frankly, the "so-called" national gym is in a deplorable state. "It's unfortunate but it's all we have to work with right now," said national boxing coach Andre Seymour. "As you can see there isn't any light and it gets extremely hot in here. One of the main problems is that we cannot have competitions here or out back because there is no light. We were looking at putting up an Olympic-sized ring in the back, but it doesn't make sense doing that if we can't have competitions in it. The plan was to stage a major tournament each year in Boston Blackie's (Leonard 'Boston Blackie' Miller) name, but we had to put that on the back burner for now.
"Unfortunately, we have to stay there because it is the national training center, but because of there being no light, we have to be out by a certain time. We can't let nightfall meet us in there which gives a short period of time to train with the boxers." Taureano Johnson made headlines four years ago as a Bahamian boxing sensation at the Beijing Olympic Games. He was the first Bahamian in 20 years to qualify for the Olympics, and took it a step further by winning two matches at that level - the first Bahamian ever to do so. This year, two Bahamians (Carl Hield and Valentino Knowles) were in line to qualify for the London Olympic Games, but they faltered at the only regional qualifier.
All three trained in Cuba leading up to their respective targeted Olympics. There's no telling who will be in the pipelines for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. One thing is for certain - if they have to train at the national gym in its current condition, it will be a long road for them in terms of qualifying. Hield, who now trains at home, said that it's a "national disgrace," especially when there is the expectation for boxers to qualify for major tournaments.
"I mean really and truly, what are we supposed to do. We can't get in a full training session because after a while it gets dark and you have to leave at a certain hour," he said. "On top of that, the bags are old, the ring is old and small and the gloves in there are worn out. The heat doesn't bother us that much because as boxers we are supposed to be losing weight, but how can we expect boxers from the out islands or even foreign boxers to come and train with us, if the equipment is no good.
Overall, the condition is just bad" According to reports, the maintenance of the gym now falls under the auspices of the Sports Authority. However, with that organization still being in its embryo stage, there is a lack of funds as it relates to the upkeep of the gym. Seymour said that it has been a hinderance to the national development program. He said that plans were well underway to take about a dozen boxers to a major tournament in the Dominican Republic in October, but as it stands now, there's no telling if they will be able to get those boxers in the appropriate shape in time.
"There are many plans that are on the drawing board, but we have encountered problem after problem as it relates to the condition of the gym," said national coach Seymour. "A number of young boys just started coming back out to the gym, because they had lost interest at one point, and we need a respectable gym to accommodate these young boxers. All we want as coaches and boxers is for the gym to be up to standard.
That's all we ask." Ray Minus Jr. and his Champion Amateur Boxing Club (CABC) have been staging local tournaments on a regular basis at the Wulff Road Boxing Center, but there has been little or no activity, as far as tournaments are concerned, at the national gym. Seymour said that he is hopeful that the situation would be worked out in short order and that things will return to a state of normalcy.
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