Craig McDougall, founder of Giants Boxing Academy. After a decade, the academy is leaving its central Hastings home. Photo / Paul Taylor.
Craig McDougall, founder of Giants Boxing Academy. After a decade, the academy is leaving its central Hastings home. Photo / Paul Taylor.
The Hastings Giants Boxing Academy are leaving their central Hastings home with a bang.
The academy has organised and sold out a tournament at the Hastings Racecourse's Cheval Room on Saturday night.
The tournament, featuring grassroots fighters from all over New Zealand, is a fundraiser for the Giants' new homebase – a building at the Hawke's Bay Regional Sports Park that should be completed by November.
Giants founder Craig McDougall said it's a nice marker of the 10 years that have passed since he set up Flaxmere Boxing, and seven years of the Giants and the Hawke's Bay Youth Trust.
"We really get a chance to continue to establish high-performance [with the move], but also the social service stuff that we do," he said.
McDougall said the opportunity to move to the Sports Park, with so many quality activities there across so many different codes, is exciting and will add value for everyone that comes through his club.
Fundraising from the tournament will go towards the Giants' $125,000 share of the multi-million dollar build, which is due to be paid in September.
McDougall said attendees can expect a good grassroots tournament, and recognise that anyone can make a fist of boxing.
"It's genuinely exciting to have some people having their first or second bout, right through to a few New Zealand champions in there, both from our gym and some others," he said.
"It's another step towards the Park, and just a chance to highlight that these kids do a whole bunch of hard work."
Latrel Pailate v Xavier Tohill (Rangiora) Manaia Ngataki v Donatello Naden (Patutahi) Brodie McDowall (WBA) v Zeke Tane (Gisborne) Nicole Richmond v Bay McCoy (Smiling Tigers) Alex Coull v Johnny Kennard (Rangiora) Shayden Herbert (Taupo) v Caleb Lovejoy (Havelock North Saints) Mercede Eunson (Napier) v Coco Varcoe Connah Rongonui (WBA) v Samuel Franca-Little Wesley Cameron (Waihi) v Finn Yarrall Tara Samuels (Havelock North Saints) v Maggie Grimshaw Mary Pailate v Teneille Brady (Wairoa) Harvey Madden v Kruize Pelesa (Rangiora) Liam Anderson v Alex Blackburn (Taupo) Renee Doole v Savanah Haehae (Rangiora) Failauga Failauga v Alhaji (Gisborne)
