On March 12, the Boys and Girls Club of New Rochelle played host to a night of fights, as amateur pugilists from around the area tested their mettle in a 14-bout card aimed at fostering a sense of camaraderie and promoting the sport among local youths. The event—run by the New Rochelle-based Champs Boxing Club in accordance with USA Boxing—was a testament to the positive effects that boxing can have on communities, according to its organizers.
Champs owner Ryan O’Leary said he was inspired to put the event together following the January shooting death of 16-year-old Juan Oliveros, an event that rocked the New Rochelle community. O’Leary—who has been training boxers for 30 years—has long looked at the sport as a positive outlet for youths and said he was eager to work with with the Boys and Girls Club as a way to promote a positive message.
According to O’Leary, Saturday night’s event, which featured 28 boxers of all ages from Westchester, Connecticut, New York City and Long Island, was a promising first step.
“We really couldn’t have asked for a better night, everything went perfect, everyone came out and supported it and I’ve gotten so many requests about signing up since then,” he said. “I want kids to see that boxing is a safe thing, and I think we got the message across that everyone is respected.”
Bouts were held in multiple weight classes—from the 90-pound pee-wee division to 203+ novices—and featured a number of competitors beginning to find their footing in the ring.
Evan Caffrey, a Rye High School senior, recorded his first amateur win at 132 pounds, earning a unanimous decision victory over Devin Hernandez from the Bronx-based SouthBox gym. Caffrey, who also plays football for Rye, said that the amount of sacrifice that goes into preparing for a match made his win on Saturday night even more exhilarating.
“Nothing compares when you think about getting ready for a fight, it takes control of your life,” said Caffrey. “When I heard my name called at the end, it was so great because I was so tired and pushing myself there in that ring; to see that be reflected in the judges’ decision was amazing.”
In total, nine Champs boxers competed on the night, with the club posting a 5-4 record. O’Leary said that record speaks to his willingness to seek out evenly matched opponents for his students. But for all the lessons his charges may have learned in the ring on Saturday, O’Leary admitted that he was just as excited about how those lessons might apply to his fighters outside of the sphere of boxing.
One of the main sponsors of the evening was Afunwa King, a Nigerian-born, Bronx-based light-heavyweight boxer with just four pro fights under his belt. According to O’Leary, King’s eagerness to be a positive force in the boxing community could be an inspiration for his younger students.
“[King] is someone that heard that message; he came here, didn’t know anybody, got into boxing and he got a family from it,” said O’Leary. “The kids see someone like that giving back and hopefully it has an effect on them.”
O’Leary went on to add that he believes that the event could be the beginning of a fruitful partnership between his Division street gym and the Boys and Girls Club of New Rochelle.
“They want to talk again, and hopefully we can set up maybe six of these a year, one every two months,” he said. “We were just lucky because everyone showed up and performed, but each time we want to make it a little bigger, a little better and provide the opportunity to have a good, clean, fun night out for families.”
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