The GOLDEN GLOVES and the dusty old gym

[Zelley]

Beyond the glory of the Olympic Games, the Pan Am Games or the Commonwealth Games, the only real game is the Golden Gloves
wth the bright lights and the roar of the crowd.

Today, in places like Vancouver, B C there may not be any large loud crowds or bright lights, But, for many years since 1939, the only real game from Vancouver Island, to Prince George and the Alberta border, was
the upsets, glory and pain of the annual Golden Gloves action at the Gardens in the PNE in the north east side of town.

Beyond the roar of the crowd, there are a thousand stories, but nothing lasts forever. Sadly, today, many of the boxers, coaches and officials
are gone, and nobody is here to tell their stories of double left jabs,
one punch knocouts, dressing room dramas, and the long ride home.

Beyond the flashing lights and flashy fists, the real story begins and ends in the dusty old gym with shadow boxing and skipping, and the thud of the
heavy bag while a few old vererans look on and think about yesterday.

[Dennis]

Go ahead and tell the story.

[Zelley]

Go ahead and tell the story.

There are many stories to tell from the dusty old gym to the bright lights of the Golden Gloves.

One such story could be the 1966 bantamweight bout between Harold Handlin of Prince George
vs Jimmy McMillan of the Vancouver Firefighters.

Throughout the rounds of the finals the slick moving McMillan would throw fast punches, butformost of the fight, he would catch air while Harold bobbed and weaved. Harold would win the fight, but it was
McMillan that would enter the Canadian championships and win a title.

Handlin would move to Victoria, but would only compete in one bout in a club
show hosted by the London Boxing & Athletic Club. In the bout, he would face another
Lower Mainland boxer. This time he would dazzle the crowd with a one punch knockout.

THe question that may be difficult to answer is how would the Golden Glovers of 2008 and 2009
do against the slick boxers and knockout artists of the "sizzling sixties"?

From the eyes of the Sixties fight fan:
Sixties boxer---------------- the 2009 boxer
ring official (sixties)--------- , 2008 Olympic referee
boxing fans of the sixties-------- observors of Olympic boxing

[Dennis]

Yeah and everyone always remembers the winters being worse years ago. Memories do play tricks on us. When I watch tapes of old fights, I realize that many of today's boxers would win in head to head competition. There are exceptions of course. Sugar Ray Robinson would do very well in any era.

[Zelley]

Yeah and everyone always remembers the winters being worse years ago. Memories do play tricks on us. When I watch tapes of old fights, I realize that many of today's boxers would win in head to head competition. There are exceptions of course. Sugar Ray Robinson would do very well in any era.

In the Fifties and Sixties there were more boxers in amateur boxing.

Looking at the collection of todays fighters in the Olympics, I don't believe they are more skilled
than amateur boxers of the Sixties or Fifties. A glowing example was the Cuban boxers.
They just didn't have those slick skills. Body punching skills for many of todays contenders
is sadly lacking.

Also, many of the young pros today lack some of the basics. How many of todays boxers could stand in the middle of the ring and make an opponent miss every punch. How often in amateur boxing
does one see the one punch knockout How many of todays pros and amateurs have
so so footwork.

Watching old fight films is like watching old movies. Aside from the slick modern day
movie magic and special effects, the key to judging actors is the acting skills
not the quality of the film or lighting.

I'm sure a Gene Fullmer could do okay against many of todays middleweights.

No only would Sugar Ray Robinson do very well in any era, but so would a skilled contender like
Joey Archer or a banger like Hurricane Carter.

[Zelley]

Yeah and everyone always remembers the winters being worse years ago. Memories do play tricks on us. When I watch tapes of old fights, I realize that many of today's boxers would win in head to head competition. There are exceptions of course. Sugar Ray Robinson would do very well in any era.

In the Fifties and Sixties there were more boxers in amateur boxing.

Looking at the collection of todays fighters in the Olympics, I don't believe they are more skilled
than amateur boxers of the Sixties or Fifties. A glowing example was the Cuban boxers.
They just didn't have those slick skills. Body punching skills for many of todays contenders
is sadly lacking.

Also, many of the young pros today lack some of the basics. How many of todays boxers could stand in the middle of the ring and make an opponent miss every punch. How often in amateur boxing
does one see the one punch knockout How many of todays pros and amateurs have
so so footwork.

Watching old fight films is like watching old movies. Aside from the slick modern day
movie magic and special effects, the key to judging actors is the acting skills
not the quality of the film or lighting.

I'm sure a Gene Fullmer could do okay against many of todays middleweights.

No only would Sugar Ray Robinson do very well in any era, but so would a skilled contender like
Joey Archer or a banger like Hurricane Carter.

[Dennis]

Bernard Hopkins would have succeeded in the 50's or any other decade. So would Floyd Mayweather. There are many others too.

The current amateur boxers have adapted to how the olympics are scored. No credit for body shots = fewer body shots.

[Zelley]

Bernard Hopkins would have succeeded in the 50's or any other decade. So would Floyd Mayweather. There are many others too.

The current amateur boxers have adapted to how the olympics are scored. No credit for body shots = fewer body shots.

Then that is a significant problem! Body shots don't need to be scored, but they sure can be used to set-up power punches. With the decrease in versatility, the Olympic boxers become point
scoring machines. What kind of brainless boxing is that, they might as well be shadow boxing
in an empty room for the potential excitement that they can't create.

There used to be an old saying about bringing your own referee and judge to the fight, that would be the return of the knockout punch instead of the hopeless point scoring arm punching and holding
dance routines.

[Dennis]

You are discussing some of the problems with the electronic scoring system. I would like it to change so that a boxer would get credit for body blows and score extra points for a knockdown. Boxers would then have more of an incentive to go for broke.

Mel - you don't need to jump in and tell me all the reasons why AIBA will not do it. I already know why they didn't in the past, but I am hoping that with their new found interest in pro boxing that some changes will happen. Hopefully, they can convince the IOC to implement some of the changes at the Olympics. Probably not for 2012, but maybe 2016.

[Zelley]

In reviewing old boxing video, I highly recommend every current coach and amateur boxer to watch any of the EDER JOFRE fights,

I place Jofre in the best of all time class along with Robinson, Armstrong,
Duran and Pep. Jofre had it all, balance,leverage accuracy, speed and timing.
Eder was a slick boxer with all the right moves and an effective puncher.

Can today's boxers show some of the good old stuff, of course they can.
But, as long as all those involved in amateur boxing sit back and allow
dumb scoring systems to dictate the style of boxing then all is lost.

Regardless of the scoring system, all boxers should place the values
of the sport above their chance to win Olympic Gold. Tough choice,
you bet!

[haileybean]

Go ahead and tell the story.

There are many stories to tell from the dusty old gym to the bright lights of the Golden Gloves.

One such story could be the 1966 bantamweight bout between Harold Handlin of Prince George
vs Jimmy McMillan of the Vancouver Firefighters.

Throughout the rounds of the finals the slick moving McMillan would throw fast punches, butformost of the fight, he would catch air while Harold bobbed and weaved. Harold would win the fight, but it was
McMillan that would enter the Canadian championships and win a title.

Handlin would move to Victoria, but would only compete in one bout in a club
show hosted by the London Boxing & Athletic Club. In the bout, he would face another
Lower Mainland boxer. This time he would dazzle the crowd with a one punch knockout.

THe question that may be difficult to answer is how would the Golden Glovers of 2008 and 2009
do against the slick boxers and knockout artists of the "sizzling sixties"?

From the eyes of the Sixties fight fan:
Sixties boxer---------------- the 2009 boxer
ring official (sixties)--------- , 2008 Olympic referee
boxing fans of the sixties-------- observors of Olympic boxing

Harold Handlen was my daddy. And proud of it.. Any info or pics would be appreciated.

[Zelley]

Sad to say GOLDEN GLOVES boxing, in some Canadian locations, is just not what is used to be.
When I was in the 1967 golden Gloves in Vancouver, I had three fights against open class boxers in a two day tournament. Now you cannot have more than one bout in a day, so three in two is history. Also,
in the 2010 BC Golden Gloves there were too many novice bouts which is not Golden Gloves material.

So, if two novice boxers fight with only a couple of bouts, will the winner now be referred to in the local newspapers as a Golden Gloves champion or a novice champion?

[Zelley]

Go ahead and tell the story.

There are many stories to tell from the dusty old gym to the bright lights of the Golden Gloves.

One such story could be the 1966 bantamweight bout between Harold Handlin of Prince George vs Jimmy McMillan of the Vancouver Firefighters.

Throughout the rounds of the finals the slick moving McMillan would throw fast punches, butformost of the fight, he would catch air while Harold bobbed and weaved. Harold would win the fight, but it wasMcMillan that would enter the Canadian championships and win a title.

Handlin would move to Victoria, but would only compete in one bout in a club
show hosted by the London Boxing & Athletic Club. In the bout, he would face another
Lower Mainland boxer. This time he would dazzle the crowd with a one punch knockout. boxing fans of the sixties-------- observors of Olympic boxing

Harold Handlen was my daddy. And proud of it.. Any info or pics would be appreciated.

So what ever happened to Harold? The last time i saw him was in the eighties when he was recognized at the 1985 Diamond Belt tournament.

[Zelley]

A new round of debate would be of interest