Young boxers at top of game
BUTLER TWP— Amateur boxers Jimmy and Justin Emrick have hit the road to ply their craft — at age 10.
The twin boys train under their father, former professional kickboxer Jim Emrick, through his Eyes On The Prize boxing program at the Butler Health and Fitness facility on Duffy Road.
The Emricks competed in the Ringside National Junior Summer Boxing Classic last month in Augusta, Ga., where they earned top national rankings for their weight class and age groups.
Jimmy won the 65-pound weight division and is ranked No. 1 in the nation in his division. Justin lost the 70-pound championship match to the top-ranked fighter in the world in that division. Justin is ranked No. 2 nationally in the 70-pound 10-year-old division.
Later this month, the Emricks are traveling to Las Vegas to compete in the 2007 Junior Golden Gloves National Championships. Immediately after that, they will compete in the 2007 Ringside World Championships in Kansas City, Mo.
"I told them that if they fared well in Georgia, I'd get them to the Las Vegas competition,"the elder Emrick said. "They held up their end of the bargain."
Traveling to boxing shows is nothing new for this family. The Emricks have competed in Allentown, Washington D.C., Cleveland and Orlando, Fla.
They've also won Golden Gloves championships in the Pittsburgh and Philadelphia regions.
<embed src="/assets/mov/BE2276776.MOV " width="320" height="250" autostart="true" loop="false" align="right"></embed>"We've only been going to competitions for the last year or so,"Justin Emrick said. "But Dad's been training us since we were 2."Boxing goes back a long way in the Emrick family. Jim Emrick was a longtime kickboxer who converted to boxing after sparring with undefeated professional heavyweight Eddie Chambers on numerous occasions.Chambers is 29-0 with 16 knockouts and is ranked eighth nationally. Jim Emrick's father was a longtime kickboxer as well."I used to think kickboxing was it in terms of ring competition,"Jim Emrick said. "Eddie Chambers opened my eyes. Sparring with him, he taught me so many things."I had planned on becoming a professional boxer myself, but figured I'd be better suited running my own gym and training younger fighters, including my boys."The Emricks also played football in recent years, but surrendered that sport to concentrate on boxing."Two people in the ring, one on one — this is more fun,"Justin Emrick said. "You get to hit people without going to jail.""Getting to hit people is fun,"his brother Jimmy agreed. "And the atmosphere is cool."Despite their young age, the Emrick boys are serious about boxing. And their father is serious about training them."This sport is a selfish sport,"Mr. Emrick said. "It's just you and the other guy in the spotlight. Football's fine and the kids enjoyed it, but it's a team sport. Now it's just them."The goals of the Emrick boys are as high as they can get — and years down the road.The 2016 Olympics and world titles are among them."I want to wear a championship belt some day,"Justin said.Boxing burnout? The boys' father-trainer isn't buying it."We keep it fun,"he said. "It's not the same old training routine day after day. We mix things up and the boys love it."
