Expert: Melanie Ley - 7/26/2007

Question
QUESTION: if i join the golden gloves in nj, i just want to know how long am i going to have to train/wait for my first amatuer fight, and if i try to get the most out of my time how frequently can i have fights, also how many years does it take to turn pro if it was a good amatuer career with frequent fights?
thankyou.

ANSWER: You will actually have to register with USA Boxing in order to participate as an amateur.  Golden Gloves is a group member of USA Boxing, not a separate entity.  Most good coaches say at least 8 months of training/sparring before a boxer's first bout.  You can box as often as you want, but not more than twice in 7 days unless you're in a tournament.  I don't know how many shows New Jersey has every month, but you should be able to compete in all of them as long as you have an opponent (matched by age and weight).  Most amateurs who do well nationally and internationally have competed for 9 or more years, and have started when they were anywhere between 8 and 10 years old.  Oscar De La Hoya had competed as an amateur for 13 years when he went to the Olympics.

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QUESTION: im 17 and i want to turn pro (if i can) by 20 max, i cant spend more than 3 years as an amatuer. is that ok? will it drastically fade my chance?
ANSWER: Three years in amateur boxing is better than none at all.  However, you probably will end up boxing local club shows and not moving much past that.  I don't know why you say you only have three years - most of our good amateurs don't turn pro until they are 23 or 24.  Please email me at mel@amateurboxing.com, tell me the city and state you live in, and I'll send you a contact for your area.

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QUESTION: i live in sewell nj 08080. theres a golden gloves in north jersey but its very far. i want to turn pro by 20 becouse college and jobs are going to distract me and im afraid ill lose focus..
thanks for the contact.

Answer
I don't give out contacts phone numbers on open forums.  Please email me at mel@amateurboxing.com, remind me you live in New Jersey and I'll send you a contact who can refer you to an amateur gym in your area.  It won't necessarily be a "Golden Gloves" gym, either.