By Melissa Moore-Randall
RHS Boxing has been on an amazing journey from heavy bags dangling from a ceiling of a scanty Revere High School office space to a USA Boxing sanctioned King of the Ring Tournament.
Revere Junior Sebastian Orellana won the Junior Novice 125-pound New England King of the Ring Championship fight on Saturday, while Sophomore Jamil Orchi lost in a split decision to a 16 year old from Nonantum Boxing after a well fought battle.
Orchi and Orellana, members of the Revere High School Boxing Club, participated in their first USA Boxing sanctioned event this past weekend. The five day event featured top amateur boxing with over 450 registered boxers from all over the country and also including Puerto Rico, Mexico, Ireland and Canada.
Revere Police Officer and School Resource Officer Joe Singer founded the program. “Warriors are not the ones who always win, but they are the ones who always fight. You have to ask yourself what you are fighting for? What is your why? At some point in everyone’s life, we all have to fight for something. I could not be more proud of these kids, Sebastian and Jamil, and how far they have come.”
Reflecting on his first sanctioned fight and win, Orellana added, “I mean what an aggressive fight it was. We fought in the phone booth the entire time. I just wanted it more and worked for it so much more in my opinion. It was a good fight, but onto the next.â€
“It’s been kinda crazy seeing how far I have come, especially confidence wise. Before I was not really able to talk to anyone nor did I want to. But since I joined boxing it changed. The structure and community it has offered has been super beneficial. If it was not for boxing, I probably wouldn’t be doing anything right now, I just wake up, go to school, come home, eat, sleep and repeat. I am super grateful that I got and still get the opportunity to box with the guys,” added Orchi.
To learn more about Revere’s Boxing Program, contact Officer Singer at [email protected]
