Gritty George gloves up to win it for mum
ONE fighter’s resilience and determination at the Cairns Charity Fight Night has inspired the organisers for the next event in September.
Although he had never fought before in his life, George Bell knew he had to give it his all when he stepped into the ring.
The Westcourt man took part in the fight night on Saturday to raise money for his mother Mary, who has been bedridden since suffering a brain haemorrhage last year.
“The way I see it, mum brought me into this world and I had no choice but to fight for her,” he said.
Mr Bell raised $5000 in preparation for the night for a motorised wheelchair to help restore his mother’s mobility.
He entered the ring against Travis Nation with the winner receiving half of $500 from the other’s chosen charity.
Despite struggling as he approached the third round, the first-time boxer knew he had to pull through.
“I was gassed in the second round. I said to my trainer I couldn’t do the third round,” he said.
“I almost gave up, but he told me to stick it out and to think of mum.”
Ultimately, Mr Bell pulled out a win, earning a trophy and an extra $250 to go towards his mother’s rehabilitation.
“I rushed home afterwards to show mum the trophy. She thought it was quite special what I was doing for her,” he said.
“We keep the trophy at her home now as a symbol of her recovery.”
Currently, the Bell family is in the process of working out measurements for the wheelchair to allow Mrs Bell to move around again.
Charity Fight Night organiser Rod Little said the group wanted to carry the momentum onto the next event which will be in September.
“It was a tremendous night, we had 600 people turn out, they all loved it,” he said.
“Though we fell short of our goal of $18,000 with only $12,000, the extra $5000 George raised was great to see.”
“For the next one, I want to take a step back and look at how we fundraise and bring more charities on board.”
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