By Mauricio Sulaimán
President of the WBC – Son of José Sulaimán
Commemorating Father’s Day, it occurred to me to write about the father-son relationship in our sport.
The father takes the boy to the gym, and on many occasions he himself is the one who trains him, and even manages him. Everything is fine until … it’s time to get into the ring to fight.
The line should be drawn then and another person is the one who should be responsible for being in the corner during the fight. Why? Because boxing is not a game, it is a contact sport with high physical demands and health can be put at risk. There is no person more demanding than our father, and there is no person more obedient, eager to please and proud than the son.
The father will always demand more from his son, who in turn would never be able to demure, determined to make dad proud no matter what the sacrifice.
Many of the ring accidents have occurred with fighters, who have their father as a chief corner; fights that should have been stopped, and due to the above, it tragically did not happen. Continue reading “The Fathers in Boxing”