When the inevitable question arises, Camille Estephan takes a deep breath. Then weigh your words. “It hurts boxing, similar actions. »
“It’s bullyingthis is unacceptable,” adds the promoter of Eye of the Tiger Management (EOTTM).
Estephan talks in particular about the remarks that his main competitor, Yvon Michel, made towards judge Benoît Roussel and the Régie des alcools, des courses et des jeux (RACJ) after the defeat of Kim Clavel by split decision, last Saturday .
In a press conference following the fight, Michel argued that judge Roussel, an internationally renowned official, should not have judged the fight, under the pretext that his team had “statistics on him, and this It’s not beautiful.” Roussel has tended to favor visiting fighters facing those from Quebec here in the past, according to Yvon Michel.
But Estephan also, and above all, refers to the revelations of journalist Martin Leclerc, from Radio-Canada Sports, that the promoter of GYM had burst into the RACJ locker room that evening, verbally attacking the responsible for the officials, Sylvie L’Écuyer, and to the referee Albert Padulo fils, whom he confused with judge Roussel.
Yvon Michel has since denied having acted in this way in the media, but has only qualified his comments about Judge Roussel.
It doesn’t matter, according to Estephan. The damage has been done.
“I didn’t see the fight,” he said, wanting to be transparent. I saw the highlights. I saw the interviews that were done afterwards. The job of a judge is not easy. […] That doesn’t mean an individual can’t have a bad night. But I’m not here to judge Benoît Roussel’s work. I respect him enormously. I see his accomplishments. »
He deplores that the image of professional boxing has taken a hit since Saturday. It “does something” to him to hear people talk about the sport that he is “passionate about” as a “circus”.
We are all passionate about this sport, and being hit with rocks in the same way really saddens me. We have to help each other, and we didn’t help ourselves. Yes, emotions can arise, but these are things that can be fixed. You should not wash your dirty laundry outside.
Camille Estephan
Estephan’s response is long and thoughtful. And it’s not finished.
“It really makes me happy. I would like to say that in my opinion, the Régie in Quebec is doing an excellent job. There is no doubt. They are there for the right reasons. »
“It’s very, very well managed,” he continues. On the part of professional boxing, I want an apology to these people. »
Camille Estephan confirms that as the organizer of an event like this, “you can give your opinion” regarding the choice of judges. “There is always a right of review on this, but it is the Commission which ultimately decides. »
“We are at the mercy of that”
For Marc Ramsay, situations like those experienced by the Yvon Michel Group on Saturday, “it’s a bit part of the business”.
“The fight itself was a very close fight,” said the coach. I watched it myself. We are in a judged sport. We see this in figure skating. We see this in many other sports. We are at the mercy of that. »
He too had to accept decisions with which he did not agree. “Sometimes, I even had decisions [de mon côté] that I didn’t think I had. »
At RDS, Yvon Michel explained that he saw Benoît Roussel “as the pivotal judge” among the three officials; the other two were Americans.
Ramsay is more of the opinion that it is generally the neutral judge who tips the scales. He gives the example of Artur Beterbiev’s fight against Englishman Callum Smith next January. It provides that a Quebec judge and a judge from the United Kingdom will officiate this fight. But it is the selection of the third individual that he will examine more precisely.
“When we come across neutral judges, I like having a list. We can choose from there, we look at the judges’ tendencies, see if they go more for the technicians or the guys a little more rough. You can have a selection, but with our own management, it’s rarer. »
These interviews with EOTTM members took place as part of the official weigh-in for Wednesday’s gala, featuring Mary Spencer in the final, a world championship rematch against Belgium’s Femke Hermans.
Is Spencer’s trainer, Samuel Décarie-Drolet, satisfied with the choice of those who will decide the fate of his protégé for this clash?
“To be honest with you, I didn’t even look at the judges’ choice,” he says.
“It will be up to us to leave no doubt in the minds of the judges, by offering the best possible performance. »