Your first instinct as a parent - aside from boundless, infinite love - is surely to protect. To care for and take care of, this young person you helped bring into this world.
So the idea of agreeing to, supporting and being entirely complicit in that young person participating in a sport as dangerous, barbarian and brutal as boxing is not one that sits comfortably with many parents. I completely understand if people judge me, and I hope that I never live to regret it. I know the risks and I discussed them with my son, who at the age of 13 decided that boxing would be a good sport to try. Once he tried it, he realised he wanted to do more than just try it. It's ok hitting a bag a few times, learning to skip, doing a bit of shadow boxing and practising throwing basic shots with other beginners, but going into full contact sparring and getting whacked on the end of the nose is usually the point at which some decide boxing's not for them. And who could blame them?
But not our son. And I'm glad about that. I have to confess at this point that I'm a little old school as a parent - I would rather my kids experienced a few falls and bloody noses, both physical and metaphoric, fairly early on in their journey through life so that they understand life can be tough, it can hurt and that you need a plan that reduces your chances of getting hurt too often.
But GG saw those first few blows as just another part of a learning process, and so the new sport took on a new significance. He's one of those kids who finds most sports easy to pick up, and would have been a better footballer than his old man I think had he continued to play the game he started at 5 years old but by 12 had lost almost all interest in. As a tall, slight and slightly awkward 12 year old, I would say he was much more natural as a footballer than he is as a boxer, though his innate co-ordination and physical literacy mean he has picked it up fairly quickly. Boxing requires hard work, discipline and repetition to master or at least become proficient at the basics. He watched from the corner of the dressing room when I coached or managed football teams and so he understood how it all worked, and that to get better at something you had to do more than just turn up. His mindset is impressive, he just gets it and for the first time in his life, he found something in boxing that he wanted to get better at with a passion.
The changes in a young man at that age come thick and fast, but the ones that I attribute to a large extent to his involvement in boxing have been so positive. The discipline and application he has very quickly learned he needs in order to progress as a boxer have then been seen in other areas of his life - doing his chores and committing to his studies in a way we didn't see from our son before he walked into a boxing gym. He's far from perfect like his father but the impact boxing has had on his life has been welcomed with open arms by my wife and I.
Talking to his mother about the risks associated with the sport was an important conversation and probably made easier by the fact that some of her family have boxed a little over the years. Whilst not an avid sports fan or participant, she also get the process and the many benefits of committing to self improvement linked to sport...so whilst it still isn't an easy one for her, watching her baby boy take a few blows to that pretty face is accepted by both of his parents as an occupational hazard, but one outweighed by the overall benefits of his participation and in the context of the environment within which he boxes and trains.
Like any sport, the environment and people within it are so important. Important in terms of how much the participants progress within the sport and how much they enjoy it, but also in terms of how safe they are as they make that progress.
We live in Spain and whilst my Spanish is ok after a few years here, I still struggle to pick everything up when talking with GG's coach and I am far from familiar with the technical language of boxing in Spanish. Fortunately his coach is not only a very experienced and respected coach of young amateurs, he also has a strong duty of care for the boxers and insists on high standards both in terms of what he demands of the boxers but also what he provides in terms of a safe environment. Furthermore, he has regular sessions with English coaches who have considerable experience in the sport and with whom I can discuss the process in English in and so has the benefit of having mentors in both languages to help guide him.
Whilst I have never boxed myself, at least in controlled surroundings, I have long been a big fan of the sport so being on the journey is great for me. It also makes me realise how little I know.
Firstly, amateur boxing is a completely different sport to professional boxing - different rules, different constraints, different methods that determine success....and much more. It is also much, much safer than professional boxing. If a kid takes 2 or 3 unanswered blows to the head a referee will give him or her a standing eight count. Two or three standing eight counts and a fight is often stopped regardless of which round they occur in. Amateur boxing is only three imes three minute rounds, or less for younger age groups. Whilst that can still be a huge physical exertion (try just whacking a bag for a minute continuously and you'll realise how long three minutes is when the bag whacks you back and you have to get out of the way whilst also trying to land your own blows!), it means that fatigue and the physical strength required to land heavy blows are not such significant factors - both can be big factors in terms of determining the outcome of professional bouts.
As a fairly experienced coach in another sport, I thought I'd be able to turn my hand to boxing in some way to support my son. The first time I took him on the pads I realised I was starting from square one, at least in terms of training the technical process and skills required. I now know what it feels like for a parent to raise their hand and volunteer to run a kids' football team without any experience of the game! Fish riding a bike stuff to start with, though I'm getting there slowly.
What I have realised though is that boxing doesn't need to involve physical contact, or at least blows to the head, to have a significant positive impact. I believe the sport should be promoted for so many reasons, and to all ages. The physical benefits of regular boxing training are huge - young GG is fitter now than I ever was at any stage of my sporting career, he has muscles on muscles and is so quick now in his movements and coordination as a result of less than a year of boxing training. His Grandad suffered a stroke last year and I'm certain that boxing would benefit him. Any person of any age can benefit from the physical and mental benefits of boxing training. It does not have to include physical confrontation - I think most people who would dismiss the sport due to the barbaric nature of what they may see on their television fail to understand that. As for those mental benefits, it's a natural confidence builder as well as a scientifically proven method of treating many who suffer with poor mental wellbeing.
As for young GG, the benefits are not just measured when he steps into a ring or looks at himself in the mirror...the pair of them have become good friends recently.
He is part of a team that provides a support network, friendship and something to aspire to. He has ventured into inner city gyms, looked complete strangers in the eye and shaken hands with them before stepping in to spar with kids of all levels (and never leaves the gyms without embracing or shaking hands with his sparring partners). He organises his daily routine to ensure he has time to study, to train and to rest. He prepares many of his own meals to ensure his diet reflects the needs of his training schedule and having missed a check weight for what was scheduled to be his first fight he is now aware of what he puts in his body (though as his coaches and his father have said, making weight shouldn't be something to get too concerned about for a beginner).
Most pleasing of all though, he leaves training or returns home with a look in his eye I rarely if ever saw after football - with a glow from the passion that burns inside him for the sport. He's a very privileged kid in many respects and his life is a far cry from many of the kids around the world who box because it may be their ticket out of poverty. They train like they need boxing, not just because they want to box. Who knows if this will remain the case but GG right now trains like he needs boxing, and he's learning so much about the sport and about life as a result. He has been lucky to get the support of some great people who display great human qualities and values - we've met so many good people on the journey so far. The sport is tough, and so are the people...tough but kind, respectful, warm, disciplined, honest...people who set a great example and in whose company a kid like my son can only benefit. Professional boxing has a habit of attracting charlatans and its fair share of crooks, but in the world of amateur boxing where coaches are volunteers and the only currency is respect, respect that must be earned, I have seen very little evidence that would make me question whether the sport is a healthy environment for my son to frequent. Quite the opposite in fact, I encourage any parent to let their kids give the sport a go if they want to. Having worked with young professional footballers, and played with many after they drop out of the full time game, I'm acutely aware that sport should prepare kids for life after the sport has stopped being a factor in their lives because that usually happens sooner than most of us would like. Precious few make it to the top or make a living out of sport so it's not really a career choice. But it is a choice than can better prepare them for life.
Boxing in Spain is not as strong as it is in England so GG may have an opportunity to compete at a higher level in Spain than he would perhaps have done if we still lived in England. George is still an absolute novice - he still needs to learn to throw straight shots properly - but he's improving. Who knows when and where his journey will end (and I'm learning that perhaps I shouldn't doubt him when he sets his eyes on a goal) but I'm extremely happy and proud my son can call himself a boxer.
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