Family of fighters
Brothers Daniel and Gerard Ryan going to nationals along with cousin James Hughes.
Success at the 2017 Canadian Championship will definitely be relative for the St. Catharines Boxing Club.
With Daniel Ryan, 19, and younger brother Gerard, 16, about to make their third trip to nationals and cousin James Hughes, also 16, going to the Canadian championships for the first time, how could it not be a family affair?
Inexperience hurt Daniel Ryan in his first appearances at nationals three years ago. He finished one and out, losing his only fight after opening the competition with the bye.
“I didn’t throw enough punches,” he said. “It was my first experience fighting three-minute rounds.”
The five-year club member fared much better on the return trip. After opening with a victory, the elder Ryan lost his second flight by a close, split decision that required a countback.
“I just could have pushed it a little more,” he said. “I might have moved on to the finals.”
This year he won all four of his fights at the Ontario championships, including two by knockouts, to once again clinch a berth to nationals in the 165-lb. Division.
“I feel pretty good about my chances in Quebec,” he said. “I felt really good, really untouchable at the provincials.”
“I was just getting ‘that feeling’ back, and I think I can do that and do it again.”
The Jamie Janzen Plumbing and Heating employee attributed his success at the provincial qualifier to “finding a really good rhythm in my training.”
“I was in good shape,” he said. “Everything was going well. My warmup felt good, I felt good in the ring, I felt outside the ring.”
Daniel Ryan, who estimates that he was won “about two thirds” of his 53 fights, will be one of three boxers representing Ontario in the division in Quebec City.
Mississauga’s Kingsley Alexander automatically qualified as the reigning national champion. Also going will be the bronze medallist at provincials.
Gerard Ryan has compiled a 4310 record in six years with the St. Catharines club, and he is the most successful of the three local fighters who are going to nationals.
His goal of coming home with the gold medal in the youth 141-lb. Division only sounds immodest to people who don’t know about his Canadian championship in 2015 and the silver medal he settled for last year.
He was able to skip the Ontario qualifier thanks to a top-two finish at last year’s national championships, also held in Quebec City.
For Gerard Ryan, that sets the stage for bouts against boxers who might get a boost from the experience of recent fights at qualifiers in their respective provinces.
He concedes that could give his competition an advantage, “but I’ll also be fresher.”
Hughes, a Grade 11 student at Saint Francis Catholic Secondary School, qualified to compete in the 152-lb. youth class at the event taking place April 24-30 in Quebec City despite losing his lone fight at provincials. While the decisive loss to Windsor’s Hunter Lee in the Ontario final dropped Hughes’ record to 14-3, the twoyear club veteran nonetheless had his ticket to nationals punched on the strength of a second-place showing.
“Gold and silver go to nationals, I lost in the final,” said Hughes, who received a bye into the bout against Lee.
Though coming off a loss in his last fight, Hughes said he feels more confident heading into the Canadian championships than he did on the eve of provincials.
“Better than Ontarios, I’ve been training harder.”
In addition to focusing on developing his fighting style, Hughes devoted time in the gym between fights on cardio training.
I felt really good, really untouchable at the provincials.” St. Catharines Boxing Club fighter Daniel Ryan