1. For the past month or so I’ve been watching some of my team mates slave away at pad work, pound away at the heavy bags, sweat away the hours, and drop their drawers to repeatedly step on the tell-all scale in anticipation of today. Today three of them had matches in Incheon.
2. Finding where exactly the matches were to be held wasn’t exactly easy, nor was it fun. For starters, Incheon is about 2 hours away from Cheonan and Q and I started the day off on a late note. Turns out the matches were being held at a wedding hall, of all places! When we finally arrived, the place was packed. Some of the Boxing Commission members greeted me, along with another boxing coach. I stood out like a sour thumb cause I was the only foreigner in the crowd. Black Skinny wasn’t able to make it out today but he later texted me to tell me that MBC Sports kept on following me with the camera.
3. Arrived just in time to see my first team mate, Hollywood, gear up and step into the ring. Q and I stood ringside. Our hearts pounding, hands grasped together, eyes eagerly looking for a win, and sweat beads forming on our foreheads. I really wanted Hollywood to win, really wanted him to win. Days after days, weeks after weeks, seeing him exhaust himself at training and waste away to a super mini size of the Hollywood I once knew, had me concerned. In the end, he tied.
4. Next up was the ever so cute Dae Gyu. He turned pro quite some time ago but never felt ready for a professional match. Today was his first pro fight… and he lost. While others scurried away to go watch the next match, I stood there, trying to encouraging him. I felt terrible for him but he took it well, which definitely was not how I took it in February.
5. The last of our crew to fight was Panty Boy Jr. He’s always been a crowd favourite with his cute boy-next-door frame, impressive strength, notoriously famous tattoo that covers his whole back, and his bad boy teasing of his opponent. Sure enough, he pleased the crowd one again with his 4 second knock-down in the first round. It wasn’t a K.O. but it definitely got the crowd roaring!!!
6. Among the many of us from UP Boxing Club that went, there was quite the crowd out. A couple of singers, an actor, a gagman, some famous athletes, along with MBC Sports and KBS filled the crowd.
7. The main fight of the day was a Korean female fighter who has 27 wins to her name, 26 of which are knock-outs!!! How impressive is that?!!! She towered in the ring and showed no mercy to the little Thai girl who eagerly and desperately tried to defend herself. It was like David verses Goliath all over again. Hats off to the Thai girl though for her pure determination and ability to take her punches and repeatedly get back on her feet. I had briefly talked to her before the fight and wished her luck. After the fight, we exchanged nods of the head and then I squeezed her hand. She had fought hard but Hyo Min was no match for her.
8. Returning to Cheonan after a full day of cheering and screaming at boxers up in Incheon left Q and I both super tired. We headed out for kimchi jigga and then parted ways. Q’s been taking an investment course at Hoseo University every Monday and so today he had class.
9. Headed over to Hongik for weight training and when I arrived I was greeted by the new trainer. He ran up to me and yelled out, “Hello beautiful girl!” “Wow”, I said. “Give this boy a raise!!!”… hehehe.
10. I had joked with Q today about the round girls who many of the guys practically drooled over. “Oh please… soft or skinny is definitely not the look I am going for.” I blurted out. It’s funny cause honestly, I am not self-conscious nor do I wish to look like those card girls with their shapeless bodies and bumless-bums that hardly fill up their panties. I am however a bit self-conscious with my level of femininity. I am not a girly girl but in comparison to many Korean girls, I seem so masculine. I guess I try to make up for it by wearing dresses and fancy jewellery (and always lip-gloss… hehehe). Having said that though, today at Hongik I got called beautiful by 3 different guys, much to my surprise! First it was the new trainer and then it was his buddy who, for the last couple of days or so, has been trying to make eye contact with me. The new trainer spilled the beans about me to his buddy and then his buddy’s buddy recognized me from my TV interview. What was supposed to be a serious workout turned into quite the social event with them drilling me about various things,.. my tattoo, work, boxing, boyfriend, social life (and lack there of it… hehehe).
QUESTION OF THE DAY...
When do I get my chance again?
QUOTE OF THE DAY...
I pity the fool.
-- Mr. T
As the story has it, one day I headed to the opposite side of the globe – the Flipside. I arrived in Korea February 16th, 2005 and thought I’d do a year, then leave. I was wrong. I stayed, launched my first company, Flipside Fitness, and then opened Korea's largest boxing club, Hulk's Boxing (now called Hulk's Club).
After 11.5yrs in Korea, I then picked up one day and returned to Toronto, Canada. But then I left again.
Now I live in the Philippines where I am the CEO and head coach of Empowered Clubhouse, the Philippines' first and only boxing clubhouse exclusively just for women. I also am the founder of the Lil' Sistas Project, CEO and designer of Slay Gear and Baa Baa Black Sheep .Ph.
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