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Boxing in schools?
Sky Sports News spoke to Joe Calzaghe - and others - about the move to bring boxing back to schools.
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Comments
Sean Heveran says...
My name is Sean, and im an amateur boxer from Plymouth. Ive had a number of fights and hold a very good record. I think that boxing in schools is a brilliant idea, i am an assistant coach at my schools "boxercise" club (similar to a kids gloves club) where i teach the technique of boxing to anyone who wants to learn. The general perception of boxing is that it is a brutal sport where large men beat eachother infront of spectators until one has sustained enough injury to collapse in a pool of sweat and blood. This is what i imagined as i stepped into the boxing gym 3 years ago. I quickly learned that there was a bit more to it than that. The fighters who get blooy in a fight are the ones who are worst prepared for the fight. Boxing is a skill, and a boxing match is a display of your ability. Getting hit is a part of the sport, yes. But the ability to box lies with hitting without getting hit, defending yourself untill you are able to attack. The injuries in boxing are actually very minimal. in the past 10 years there has been 4 boxers die as a result from fighting, compare this with the number of deaths from obesity, violence on streets, and drug abuse, and boxing suddenly becomes as safe as going to church. The most serious injury ive personally seen was a fighter from Bristol where he broke his nose. People gain worse injuries through suposedly safer sports like football and rugby. Are you to ban rugby and football from schools? dont be crazy! I think that the attack on boxing is because people dont understand, and my mother always told me never to interfere with things i dont understand. If the parents, teachers and governors were to actually expierience a boxing match then im sure they would stop campaigning and maybe even take the sport up!
Posted 14:17 22nd April 2008
Darren Woodwards says...
This is a great idea I take my daughter and son to the swindon boxing academy who are piloting this in swindon schools to great effect.The trainers really work well with the kids and get total respect from them.It gives the kids confidence and a great sense of self achivement.The kids have all improved with there studies because they are only allowed to join the boxing lessons if they apply themselves to there studies.
Posted 21:45 21st March 2008
Scott Mccabe says...
I think it is a good idea because then kids will be taught to fight properly and get good discipline, and hopefully it will cut down the amount of gun and knife crime, Im' all for it. Hatton all the way!!!!!
Posted 16:37 18th March 2008
Sami Choudhury says...
i think it a good i dea to bring boxing into schools because im in year 10 and there is fights in our school regulary..so it will help people control there anger
Posted 14:49 18th March 2008
Peter Williams says...
It is my opinion that boxing is less harmful than a handfull of other sports. Boxing has two people using people power, involving speed, technique, balance and power under the supervision of an official who can step in at any point, if things look dangerous. It doesn't involve little hard balls travelling at 90mph +, nor does it involve 10 or so 15 stone men trampeling over someone, or high speed crashes, such as motor sport or skiing. So long as students wear protective head gear, and have the right supervision boxing is safe. Another pro for boxing is that if more children had the oppertunity to release their energy in a crontroled professional environment.
Posted 13:43 18th March 2008
Oliver Forder says...
Great idea! I have a five year old son that enjoys going to Karate twice a week. The confidence and discipline that he has developed since joining has been exceptional! One of the biggest elements a child needs is confidence and the ability to confront risk with a positive and clear mind. Both boxing and martial arts promote these aspects of a child's persona. Hopefully giving them the strength of mind to say no and not let peer pressure guide them down the wrong paths! For all the people that think its a bad idea. Try it yourself first before you comment as without the experience I'm afraid your statements are biased.
Posted 13:18 18th March 2008
Dan Stanton says...
I am currently the Liverpool Combined Universities Boxing coach and the feedback from students whether-or-not they use the sport for fitness and technique or competing is astounding...Nearly every student i coach which is the closer side to 90 is that they wished that The sport of Boxing was in schools when they were there...they say it helps with their studies, channelling the frustrations of learning to cope with debt, and learning to live away from home. My view is that if it has a great effect upon students at universities then if we placed the sport within schools at an early age, not so much the contact side but the fitness and discipline aspects then young school children will reap the rewards within their everyday lives such as obesity, growing up with diffcult socio-economical backgrounds, and will help to give young people an overall aim in life and a vision to achieve...due to the opportunities within the sport to achieve, for example something so simple as losing a stone in weight, or learning how to throw a shot correctly...the sport is an individual sport and nobody carries you like they can in rugby or football...Let school children achieve that individuality!!!
Posted 13:09 18th March 2008
Manjuman Khan says...
I am a pupil at Hartshead Sports College, in Ashton, Manchester. I am studying in my fourth year in the secondary school. In my school, boxing has been open for all pupils at lunch time. We have strict rules on the restrictions of the sport. Even though, I still enjoy and learn a lot out of skipping, working on the focus pads etc. And I feel as though i have achieved something at the end of the day.
Posted 12:38 18th March 2008
Dean J says...
To have Boxing back in schools would be a tremendous benefit to all school students. To have the option to opt out should only be for the sparring element. I have taught individuals the basics, footwork, pucnches etc for both fitness and skill development and they have always been surprised as to how much they enjoy it and what they get out of it. With regards to helping the gang culture, people should NOT dwell on the fact that it will be the answer to the anti social phenomenon we have. However, Boxing is an activity which teaches composure, gives confidence, increases ones self esteem and respect to others all of which is missing from people today. Can only give positives if delivered correctly.
Posted 12:21 18th March 2008
Dean J says...
To have Boxing back in schools would be a tremendous benefit to all school students. To have the option to opt out should only be for the sparring element. I have taught individuals the basics, footwork, pucnches etc for both fitness and skill development and they have always been surprised as to how much they enjoy it and what they get out of it. With regards to helping the gang culture, people should dwell on the fact that it will be the answer to the anti social phenomenon we have. However, Boxing is an activity which teaches composure, gives confidence, increases ones self esteem and respect to others all of which is missing from people today. Can only give positives if delivered correctly.
Posted 12:19 18th March 2008
Ben Kenyon says...
The decision to bring reinstate the sport will surely be beneficial in most cases for those who enage with it. Boxing has been an unequivocally positive influence on my life, and has given me both structure and direction where there previously had been chaos. It stopped me from fighting on the streets and guided me away from a life of drink and drugs and towards a fit, healthy and responsible lifestyle. It has also provided me with great focus and motivation and has underpinned a successful completion of a university degree course. Boxing provides much needed respect, structure and discipline in a world characterised by societal breakdown where these qualities are sadly lacking. BRING IT BACK!!
Posted 11:45 18th March 2008
Paul B says...
boxing is a great sport , it helps kids let out anger but its controled , its better than them doing it in the street where some one could get hurt
Posted 10:23 18th March 2008
Andrew Shaw says...
Bad idea all round simply because you will have some nutters taking it too far and the teachers won't be able to control them from stopping them from hurting other kids. If you do allow boxing back in schools get ready for the a mass of legal claims.
Posted 09:43 18th March 2008
Haroon Headley says...
Im glad boxing is being brought back to our schools, boxing helped me as a youngster to release negative aggression. I think every young person should have the opportunity to release there aggression in a positive setting. Not only will they benefit emotionally, they will learn a fine art!
Posted 08:50 18th March 2008
Mike Nugent says...
I got back into corporate boxing in the UK back in 03 and 04 I trained up in an inner city club in Portsmouth UK where the majority of the kids would have if not boxing been roaming the streets causing grief. Boxing teaches pride and the biggest part of that is individual achievement, in order to win you gotta be in shape which means no junk food, ciggies, drugs or booze all blights on todays youth. So bring it back to schools ABSOLUTELY, its no more dangerous than rugby and the kids here in NZ bash each other from eight years old.
Posted 07:19 18th March 2008
Steve Colvin says...
As a PE teacher who has taught in London schools the idea of having boxing on the national curriculum horrifys me. Arming students with the skills to fight and inflict damage on others is plain and simply not a good idea. yes there is an epidemic of obese children, but part of this problem is the nanny culture of parenting where if it's cold, students opt out and parents allow this. the new national curriculum being introduced in September allows a greater amount of freedom in what is taught and should hopefully enable a greater amount of students to access the curriculum and develop exercise habits that they can take on into adulthood. i have taught children who have attended boxing outside of school and this made them more dangerous to the school community, other student and teachers. attacks on teachers are becoming more common and maybe the sports minister should try consulting with teachers in schools who would have to deal with the effects? if re-introducing boxing is such a good idea, why not introduce national service for 16 y/o school leavers and rationing as well. They were really good for people in the 50's and 60's!
Posted 05:24 18th March 2008
Rob Homer says...
Kids fight ,,fact, at least with boxing its governed, supervised and the respect comes with the training and that you lose/or win to a better man, you are not in a gang so you only can blame yourself.
Posted 02:34 18th March 2008
Ivan Palmer says...
I'm a PE teacher and we have had a qualified Kickboxing instructor working with some of our pupils for the last 8 weeks and they love it. Bring it back into schools and get kids inspired to take part in sport once again. It's great news that someone like Joe Calzaghe has come out and supported the sport in schools and hopefully this role model can help push it in schools.
Posted 01:08 18th March 2008
Andrew Eagling says...
I'm certainly agreeing with calzaghe, boxing is the activity some of the knife wielding idiots loitering our streets need to supress the anger they're taking to anyone in this day and age.
Posted 23:49 17th March 2008
Gerwyn Teague says...
I think boxing should be allowed back into the curriculum. my only gripe is that it wasn't allowed back into school when I was there. But the positives far outweigh the the negatives of bringing it back, in my opinion. Discipline is the 1 that everyone's been going on about, but it is so true. It gives 'tearaways' an avenue to vent their anger and take them off the streets. Aslong as there's a choice for people to opt out, which there's bound to be, I can't see a problem with it. BRING BACK BOXING ON THE CURRICULUM!!!
Posted 23:09 17th March 2008
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