Boxer aims to please
Alex Lindsay is a coach’s dream.
“He is a good listener and everything that I show him he transfers to the ring,” St. Catharines Boxing Club coach Paul Zahra said. “He is constantly training and he puts the extra effort in that all coaches want from their fighters. He skips, runs and does everything we ask.”
The 13-year-old St. Catharines resident will be making his boxing debut at the club’s Celtic Gloves Boxing Show this Friday at the Optimist Club on Napier Street in St. Catharines.
“I am a little bit nervous just because it is my first fight but I think once I step in the ring, it will all go away.”
He is looking forward to it.
“I am excited about fighting in front of people and a big crowd. I want to put on a good show for everybody.”
The Grade 8 student at St. James Catholic School became involved with boxing when COVID first hit.
“I started hitting the heavy bag in our basement and then for my birthday about a year later I got a reflex bag. Eventually last summer, I joined the club and my love for boxing has evolved.”
The initial heavy bag was provided by his mom, Rhonda, who got the boxing apparatus from a cousin.
“Hitting it was like a stress reliever and I like punching things. It was pretty fun.”
He was an instant convert to training at the St. Catharines Boxing Club.
“I liked it right away. The community here was great and they all helped me and everything when I was first starting out.”
There were a few surprises along the way.
“I never knew how much work it was actually going to be to be a boxer but I love every minute of the training and I am working really hard.”
He is a big fan of the sport.
“The atmosphere at the club is great and the sport itself is great. I like sparring and I like hitting the heavy bag.”
He has not made any long-term plans for the sport.
“I am taking it one year at a time and I am not really sure where I am going to go with the sport. But I really like it and maybe I will turn pro one day.”
Boxing is the only sport he competes in.
“Last summer I tried out for soccer and I didn’t really like it.”
He feels he has improved quite a bit since he started training at the club.
“When I first started sparring I was OK but I stuck with the sport and I have gotten better.”
Alex describes himself as a powerhouse boxer.
“I have lots of power in my right hand.”
Other club boxers competing on the June 9 card are Dylan Maissoneuve, (Irish) Gavin Freel, Riley Willis, Aashir Raja, Phoenix Young-Lazo, Rami Mahrouse and North Toms.
Tickets are $20 in advance or $25 at the door. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the boxing starts at 7:30 p.m. For more information, call 905-988-1244.
