One gold medal and three spirited performances were the reward for the four Tauranga Boxing Club members who competed in the Boxing New Zealand National Championships held in Rotorua last week.
Hannah Walker, 15, faced a formidable challenge to win the Junior Female 54kg division against Leoni Rosin in the title decider on Thursday evening. Her South Auckland opponent had international experience on her sporting resume having participated at the world junior kickboxing championships.
"The bout went down to the wire with Hannah digging deep and showing her skills to take out a narrow 3-2 split decision," Tauranga Boxing Club head coach and proud father Chris Walker said.
"Three of the judges gave Hannah the nod with two giving her all three rounds."
Ari Arlington, who was one of the Tauranga boxers to attend her first national championships, impressed in her two bouts before bowing out in the semifinals.