GOOD TO TALK
Reaction to England Boxing’s statement on the breakaway Amateur Boxing Alliance
IN the November 21 issue of Boxing News we featured commentary on the breakaway clubs that have formed the Amateur Boxing Alliancem including a statement from Gethin Jenkins, England Boxing CEO. Reacting to England Boxing’s statement, Dave Mace the head coach of the Oxford University amateur boxing club writes: “England Boxing’s response does nothing to further the dialogue between the members of England Boxing and the Alliance. The pedigree of the clubs who broke away from England Boxing (including centuries-old Fitzroy Lodge, the Olympian-producing Finchley and Dale Youth) should serve as a good indication that the problems being raised are serious and not to be brushed aside with politician-like jargon.
“Firstly, the finger-pointing as to which side best prioritises the safety of their boxers is at best laughable and at worst irresponsible. The debate about headguards seems unlikely to end any time soon, but it is vital that it takes place. If England Boxing is thoroughly convinced that the removal of headguards is beneficial for boxers, why has it allowed and continues to allow female boxers to incur the believed risks of boxing in headguards? This discrepancy means that England Boxing is failing to meet a duty of care for either its male boxers or its female boxers and therefore the matter remains undecided.
“Secondly, the annual medicals enforced by England Boxing are becoming more of a bureaucratic procedure, justifying the organisation’s claimed focus on safety, rather than an effective method of protecting boxers. Within two months of the 2018-2019 season, one boxer at our club had undergone no less than five boxing medicals, six including the required annual medical. How much did this boxer gain from this initial examination? Superfluousness aside, this insistence on annual medicals stands, in fact, to reduce the quality of the medical examinations as doctors are less rigorous in undertaking them when they feel they are unnecessary. Surely a proper and wholesale medical every three years (in addition to examinations prior to competing) is better for our boxers’ safety than an inattentive one every year.
“Thirdly, the adjustments made for some prior contact sports experience is thoroughly inappropriate. Our club recently received a card for a completely novice boxer, converting his previous wrestling bouts to a boxing record of seven bouts, four wins. This would mean that this beginner, who just about holds his own with other equally novice boxers in sparring, is expected to compete against a boxer who has entered the ring seven times. In terms of technique, javelin probably offers more of an advantage than a sport as different to boxing as wrestling. Is this really safe?
“Another indication that there are problems in need of urgent attention is the dying participation numbers in the sport. Although England Boxing boasts of 890 clubs, this is meaningless if they are not producing competitive boxers. Not only are club shows difficult to match, but even the Development championships are failing to fill up each weight category, whereas before boxers would have to compete several times in order to represent their region. This would suggest that firstly boxers are deterred by the complicated procedure of annual medicals and Vault registration and secondly, the money is clearly not reaching the grass-roots and building the sport up from the bottom. Dwindling participation numbers should be a key motivator in reaching an agreement with the clubs who have broken away and in resisting the growth of white collar boxing. After all, surely participation numbers at beginners level drives up quality in our elite ranks. While the GB team might be successful now, in future less boxers will mean less talent coming through.
“Participation is also declining among officials. The Home Counties currently have just one referee who can attend shows on the weekend. As a result, it is difficult and expensive for a club to arrange a show on the same night as another club in the region. This restricts the opportunities for the boxers to compete and for the clubs to fundraise. Furthermore, the subsidisation of coaching and safeguarding courses is a poor trade off for the revenue which running the courses used to bring in for the regional associations.
“Given all of these challenges, is it not time that we sit down with clubs with as much experience as Finchley, Dale Youth and Fitzroy Lodge and have some important discussions about what is best for our boxers going forward? It is too late to deny that there aren’t any problems and just as England Boxing advises its coaches to always keep learning, it is time for England Boxing to take heed of the experience of the country’s oldest and most successful clubs. At the end of the day, we all share the same goal: to provide opportunities for and guarantee the safety of our boxers.”
‘WE ALL SHARE THE SAME GOAL, TO PROVIDE OPPORTUNITY AND SAFETY’