A Guide for the Beginning Boxer
Welcome to the most exciting sports experience you’ve ever encountered!
Boxing is without a doubt the most rewarding and challenging sport available to America’s youth today. The combination of athleticism, physical and mental conditioning, sportsmanship, and self-worth that you will develop from boxing are unequalled in any other sport. Boxing will teach you to rely om yourself, to value the input of other, and most importantly to respect both your own skills ad those of others. You will develop a level of self-confidence that you will carry with you for the rest of your life. You will also find that this is one of the most challenging things that you will ever do. So, if you are looking for a challenging, mentally stimulating, and physically demanding and just plain fun activity, then you found it… Boxing!
Code of Conduct
The behavior of our athletes both in and outside of the gym directly reflects on this program and the people involved with it, both athlete and coach. It is imperative that everyone involved with this program represent us in a positive manner. We expect our people to set the hallmark in sportsmanship, conduct and overall behavior for all the other programs involved in boxing.
Here are a few rules and guidelines:
Respect the gym. Leave things as you found them. This includes not taking things that aren’t yours.
There will be no sparring without headgear, mouthpiece, and supervision
No foul language
When you are here WORK OUT. The gym is not a playground.
If you see something out of place PICK IT UP!
Remember that the people running the gym are volunteers. They don’t have to be here. Try to do what you can to make their job easier
You know the difference between right and wrong DO WHAT’S RIGHT! (If you don’t know the difference, ask the coach’s!)
Registration & Insurance
All amateur boxers must be registered with USA/Boxing. This is the governing body for all of amateur boxing. USA/Boxing is the organization responsible for all of the rules and sanctions for all amateur boxing in the country. A secondary insurance policy is included with the registration of each amateur boxer. Secondary coverage means that USA/Boxing insurance will cover any expenses not covered by an athlete’s own insurance. If athletes do not have any insurance of their own, then the USA/Boxing insurance covers all the expenses. Coverage includes all workouts in any registered facility. It also covers competition in any sanctioned event.
All of the officials involved in this sport are required to attend certification clinics each year to maintain the highest degree of competency at every level.
The coaches in this program are all required to attend a certification clinic yearly. They are also required to know basic first and CPR.
Why Box?
When this sport is properly coached and supervised; amateur boxing can be an extremely fulfilling and a valuable experience for today’s youth It should be used as a vehicle to instruct sportsmanship, values of conditioning a positive release of frustrations and energy, as well as building self-confidence and character.
Amateur boxing can also provide an excellent means of conditioning for the high school athlete during the off season. It is the ideal sport for youngsters who are not involved in a school sports program or aren’t attracted to team sports
Amateur boxing can also give a young athlete the opportunity to satisfy that basic human need of recognition in a positive manner. All too often this need is met through delinquent behavior.
A Note to Parents & Guardians
Most people have a general impression that boxing, both amateur and professional, are very rough and somewhat brutal sports. If they are improperly coached, supervised, and equipped, then this generality can be true. It is the express goal of this boxing club to teach youngsters all the fundamentals of boxing, both offense and defense, in such a manner that makes it a totally safe and a fun experience for every participant.
We might also point out to parents that this program is run strictly by volunteers. This usually means that there is always room for more help. If you would like to help in any manner, please contact the program director.
We have tired to cover the most frequently asked questions in this booklet, but if you have other questions or concerns, please feel free to ask one of comfortable with this program and the people involved in it.
Is Boxing Safe?
Excellent question! And one that any self-respecting parent should definitely ask. It is important to us that you understand how much we are concerned about the safety of your child.
Amateur boxing ranks 71st among amateur sports for injuries. Sports such as wrestling, diving, gymnastics, and even badminton are ranked above it. There are countless precautions and safety measures taken at every level to protect the athlete.
Amateur boxing is not about knocking your opponent out! In comparison to professional boxing, the objective and even the scoring system are entirely different. Amateur boxing is scored on a system where each technically correct punch is worth one point. A good jab scores the same as a hard right hand. A knockdown scores only for the punch or punches that lead to it. The focus of each boxer is on scoring as many cumulative points as possible, not on taking unnecessary punches in order to deliver one hard punch.
Amateur boxing is possibly the most regulated and supervised sport of any amateur competition. It requires weigh-ins and physicals before each bout. Also, the equipment used in competition must meet rigorous specifications set down by USA/Boxing. All boxers are required to wear protective equipment including gloves, headgear, mouthpieces, groin protectors, and in the event of a female bout, chest protectors. Even the padding in the rings have to meet defined specifications.
As you can see, amateur boxing takes great steps to insure that when your child is here, we are doing everything possible to protect them.