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CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. - The sport of boxing has its earliest roots in 3,000 BC when the ancient Sumerians first conceptualized the act of one-on-one combat with spectators. Leather scraps were tied around the combatants’ knuckles to prevent personal injury; no body or head pieces were worn. They would fight until one of the fighters was beaten into submission, or in some cases, death.
While the participation in the ancient style of boxing may speak something of a man’s character, the art has somewhat changed and become more participant-friendly over the thousands of years. Yet it still strengthens one’s physical and mental aptitude when he commits his days to boxing, and no boxing team can lay claim to that more than the All-Marine Boxing Team representing out of Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune.
“While we’re all still Marines and respect each other’s rank, we have a strong family atmosphere here,” said Gunnery Sgt. Narciso Aleman, assistant coach of the AMBT. “Everyone works hard and progresses daily, bringing stronger fighters in greater numbers every fight.”
Be it in fights aboard Camp Lejeune or on the other side of the country, 2010 has been a milestone in the boxing team’s history, making leaps and bounds ahead of their previous year’s performance and excelling against all who stand in their way.
“I think our most outstanding fights for 2010 would have to be the Armed Forces Championships in April, the U.S. Nationals in July and the recent (Conseil International du Sport Militaire’s (International Military Sports Council’s)) event,” said Gunnery Sgt. Reuben Woodruff, assistant coach of the AMBT. “We had boxers prominently place in all of those events while even ranking nationally - it was the first time in history America took a medal in CISM boxing.”
Before the change in head coaches in April, an average of six boxers would go to an event and only one or two would place, whereas now the boxing team could represent with fewer boxers and nearly all of them would walk away with some sort of win.
“With this sort of turnaround, I see a lot more champions coming up and more of our boxers ranking nationally,” said Cpl. Jamel Herring, a boxer with the AMBT and silver medalist in the CISM championships. “Skill and morale are high right now, and there’s more ability and tenacity in the gym than ever.”
Currently there are approximately 12 boxers on the AMBT including one female boxer. With boxing not being a seasonal sport, the team travels across the country, and periodically outside the country, to compete in whatever events they can get into - and win. The boxing team has always successfully represented Camp Lejeune and the Marine Corps altogether, yet everyone on the team agrees that 2010 has been a highlighting year.
“Out of the last four events we’ve competed in, almost every one of our boxers has won, and considering how many boxers may be in a single tournament, they’re doing outstanding,” said Woodruff. “They’re meeting and exceeding our expectations, and the only place to go after such a year is up.”
Woodruff’s insights into the boxing team’s future are shared by everyone, and the level of optimism for future events is just as high. Venturing into 2011, the AMBT’s first event will be the annual Armed Forces matches in which the boxing teams of each Department of Defense branch compete.
“While our hopes for any event is to come out victorious, our overall goal this year is to get one or two boxers into the Olympic trials matches, which will result from wins in the Armed Forces matches,” said Aleman.
With the boxing team making an astounding leap ahead in both performance and outcome, the future of these champions-to-be is bright as they look back upon their successful year. While the equipment now used has progressed vastly from the leather scraps of old, the same ferociousness inside the ring is still today being exhibited by the All-Marine Boxing Team.
| Date Taken: | 12.17.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 01.19.2011 16:22 |
| Story ID: | 63816 |
| Location: | CAMP LEJEUNE, NC, US |
| Web Views: | 194 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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