TYSON Fury prosecutor Frank Warren says violent crime on the streets of the UK could have changed his life – so he is spending £1million to stop it.
Frank’s team in Queensberry are donating the huge sum to BoxWise, a charity that puts young people in the ring to keep them out of trouble.
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The donation will allow the charity to double the number of places on its ten-week program from 1,500 to 3,000.
Legendary promoter Frank announced the donation at Islington Boxing Club – just a stone’s throw from the street where he grew up.
In an exclusive chat at the boxing club, Frank told The Sun: “I remember growing up here on the streets of North London.
“It was very difficult and life could easily have been different for me.
“The background I have, which a lot of these kids have, means you get a lot of peer pressure to be the tough guy.
“You want to do this, you want to be that. That’s what you have to take away – that’s not what this is about.
“I’m going to tell you what boxing is. When I was growing up in Islington, there were no golf clubs or tennis clubs.
“All working class kids could do was play football or box. Those were really both sports.
“They weren’t expensive sports to play – football on the grass or in the street, boxing and you went to the local gym.
“It’s not about being tough, it’s about respect. It’s not respecting someone if on the street he’s a tough guy.
“It’s a matter of respecting each other. That’s what boxing does. We will have a fight this weekend.
“After this fight, these guys will have hit each other seven bells.
“But they will hug each other – that’s respect. That comes from working in the gym.”
The son of a bookmaker, Frank grew up in Islington and started out as an unlicensed bookmaker, promoting his second cousin, Lenny McLean.
Since then, he has managed or promoted the likes of Prince Naseem, Frank Bruno, Tyson Fury, Chris Eubank, Amir Khan and Ricky Hatton.
He said: “Professional boxers are very important as role models. Children look up to them and want to be successful.
“The problem is with boxers most of them are accessible.
“Unfortunately, these days, you have to go through God knows how many people to talk to football players.
“When I was a kid, you would stand outside the Arsenal and ask for autographs. They don’t do that anymore.
“But boxers are quite approachable. They come from the area to meet people and people can see them and accept them.”
WARREN P’s
Queensberry is donating £1 million to BoxWise to boost its efforts to tackle gang and knife crime in some of Britain’s poorest areas.
The charity places disadvantaged young people on a 10-week boxing program in gyms across the country.
Queensberry’s donation will allow BoxWise to double program seats to 3,000.
Frank will also join the charity’s new development board as its chairman.
He said: “We have terrible knife crime and other problems because of the lack of respect people have for each other.
“Obviously we are in the boxing business and BoxWise does a lot of brilliant things for the community and for boxing.
“These children were excluded or were referred by the police or teachers. If they weren’t here, they would be on the streets.
“They took them through a program that changed their lifestyle, how they behave and how they interact.
“The way they interact with people, the way they work as a team, the attitude they have towards their bodies in the face of obesity and keeping in shape.
“Working together from different ethnic backgrounds. All those things — they’re all big pluses. It’s all tick-tock, tick-tock.
“Why wouldn’t anyone want to get involved? We are blessed and privileged in Queensberry to be able to do this.”
The problem is with boxers, most of them are affordable
Frank Warren
Frank added: “The fact we’re launching in Islington, where I’m from, adds a bit of spice to it.
“But this is being implemented across the country. BoxWise can now double the spaces it will have for children in the future.
“People are taking the time to do this. The adults, the coaches, it’s incredible what they do.
“Boxing clubs are part of the community and deserve community support.
“If you want to talk about crime and do things, start at the bottom.
“What BoxWise does is just a revelation – for these kids it’s a revelation.
“We will double the vacancies to 3,000. We will make it happen, it’s a fact of life.
“And then we want to go from 3,000 to 30,000. Seriously, that’s what it’s all about.
“All over Britain. Children should have opportunities – if you want better citizens, then raise them to be better citizens.”
Frank joked that if any of the youngsters at Islington Boxing Club fancied their chances as a professional, they now know where to go.
But he said: “The boxer of the future could be there now, and God bless them if they are.
“But it’s not about being a boxer, it’s about training. It’s about learning about your body.
“Obesity is a big problem in this country – they will learn about nutrition. The whole program is excellent.”
LET ME BE FRANK
BoxWise’s Rick Ogden said Frank’s donation will make a “huge difference” to thousands of young people.
Rick told The Sun: “It’s incredible. We actually got £3 million in funding
“Queensberry pledged £1 million and her donation was matched.
“With this additional funding, we will be able to immediately double that amount for more than 3,000 young people.
“It’s not just about the money, but the influence that Queensberry brings.
“Everything from the ambassadors to the annual fundraiser to raise more money.
“For any charity to be able to tap into this huge level of knowledge is really powerful.
“What happens with BoxWise is the opportunity we provide at the end of the ten-week program.
“We pay for young people to take higher education or employment courses.
“For any young person you will have a result after ten weeks, but what is the long-term result?
“They will change a lot, but they will still need that support after ten weeks.”
Rick added: “I really hope that one of the things that Frank will bring is to open some of those doors within the sport as a whole.
“Whether these young people want to continue boxing, become coaches or start volunteering in their local communities.
“If we bring thousands of young people through the program every year, there will be some serious talent undiscovered.
“Will the boxer of the future be here? Never say never. It’s absolutely possible.”
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
