In the sunny courtyard of Louis-Joseph Papineau High School, a rare figure casts a shadow. Lennox Lewis, a former three-time world boxing champion, observes about twenty young teenagers who have come to learn the basics of the noble art.
For boxing fans, Lewis needs no introduction. But for newbies like those he came to train in Montreal this week with his camp organized by his League of Champions Foundation (LOCF), a reminder is necessary.
“I told the kids they have homework to do!” Lewis jokes in front of The Press and RDS. They were supposed to go watch my fights at the Olympics. And they were supposed to watch my fights as professionals. When they came back the next day, after seeing me, they were excited.”
The 58-year-old, a native of London, has represented Canada internationally, winning bronze in the super-heavyweight category at the 1984 Olympics and gold at the 1988 Olympics. Among his most notable accomplishments, in addition to his WBC world titles, Lewis defeated Mike Tyson and Vitali Klitschko in back-to-back titles in 2002 and 2003.
But here he is, in Louis-Jo, on this cool Wednesday summer morning, without fanfare, preparing the ground for a potential next generation of boxers.
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, THE PRESS
Lennox Lewis watches outdoor training
“It’s really important for me to be here,” he said. “It started like that for me, when I was young. For kids, it’s important to have something to do in the summer. A boxing camp is good for them. It’s also a program that helps change certain behaviors.”
“They absorb everything we say”
Lewis has partnered with former Quebec boxer Didier Bence and his HitFit program. Bence became friends with Lewis starting in 2017.
“It really warms the heart to have a world-renowned boxer like Lennox,” Bence said, tenderly tapping said heart with his fist.
We are now inside the high school, very close to the ring set up in a gymnasium.
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, THE PRESS
Ian Darby, one of the camp’s coaches, in action
“My idea was to be able to bring a character like that to show young people that in life, when you really want something, when you work to get it, you will succeed.”
This character is in Montreal almost anonymously. Bence has been walking with him around town in recent days. “Lennox is a perfect example of a gentleman,” says the Quebecer. “He’ll talk to anyone on the street.”
The youngsters, for their part, “learn so quickly,” notes the man who has had a particularly good amateur career. “They absorb everything we say, it shows. We told them at the beginning that they were going to see an improvement in their boxing. They already see it.”
Helping them find “their way”
The camp, which has previously set up camp in Jamaica and Ontario for the past four years, is taking place all week at this school in northern Montreal. On this third day, the retention of young people, who come from the greater metropolitan area, is substantial.
There is a lot of talent. Rough diamonds that we need to polish.
Lennox Lewis
According to him, the neighborhood, Saint-Michel, has something to do with it. “It’s the best kind of area to hold camps in. I come from a disadvantaged neighborhood, where a lot of young people want to learn to box. Where a lot of young people are looking for their way.”
That’s what brought LOCF coach Ian Darby to the sport of boxing. On Wednesday morning, with Lewis and Bence watching, it was Darby who led the nearly hour-long warm-up in the schoolyard before the boxing session. As well as being a professional fighter, the Jamaican is a military man at home, and was drawn to leadership in his community at a young age.
“I come from a violent community,” he says in his Caribbean accent. “I realized that young people who didn’t want a violent life were looking to me. When I was 17, I started a camp where we did cadet training, marches, that kind of thing. The kids were drawn to the positive aspect, and that’s what made me realize that they need role models like that in life.”
For him, training like the one he led in the morning “can seem difficult” for young people.
“But it’s good, it’s motivating,” Darby emphasizes. “It’s saying to yourself: I can give it my all. Because in the ring, that’s what it’s going to take. And in the ring of life, too. Life is going to throw you to the ground, sometimes. How are you going to react? Were you ready, prepared? Were they trained for their lives, and to become champions. And not just boxing champions.”
” I’m available “
Before Wyatt Sanford’s bronze in Paris, Canada’s last Olympic medal was David Defiagbon’s silver in Atlanta in 1996. That was 28 years ago.
“We should be winning more medals,” says Lennox Lewis. “I’m disappointed with the boxing program in Canada. It should be much better, and better supported financially.”
Lewis, who lived in Canada from the age of 12, still has fresh memories of his Olympic medals. He throws his arms up in the air and exclaims, “Yes, my medals!” when they are mentioned.
He is clearly proud of it, which shows the importance of this career path for boxers who have made their name among the pros.
“They might even bring me in as a coach,” Lewis said of Boxing Canada. “I’m going to coach the team and make it better. I’m available.”
Didier Bence admits: they have “already talked about it”.
“I would see him so much… Maybe not as a coach, but just being there, talking to the youngsters, motivating them. It’s priceless.”