Jamie’s boxing dream a reality

[Richard]

Bendigo

BENDIGO boxer Jamie Middleton knows the sport has saved his life.

Hours spent ducking and weaving inside the ring has helped Middleton dodge prison bars and even death outside of it and now the 33-year-old is hoping to save troubled youth by opening his own boxing gym in Long Gully.

‘‘I could have been anywhere, a lot of my friends I grew up with, a few of them are still around, but a lot of them have passed on and a lot of them have been in or out of jail their whole lives,’’ Middleton said.

‘‘I was into a fair bit of crime and that sort of thing when I was younger and now I’ve had 33 fights and I’m going professional at the end of this year.

‘‘I’ve gone from going up the wrong path in life to the right one.’’

Middleton and several colleagues were left without a training base following the closure of Bendigo Martial Arts Centre.

Not for the first time in his life, Middleton decided to turn a negative into a positive.

He’s teamed with Chris Stewart and Cliff Dess to open Shed 10, which has been fitted out and is ready for training.

‘‘I grew up in commission housing and my mum never had a job or anything so life was pretty tough for us, and my father wasn’t around … I can hear the violin playing already,’’ Middleton said.

‘‘Clint and Chris and I just want to help a few people out, we want to put something out there for the community.

‘‘I know there are other boxing gyms there, but that’s what we want to do.’’

Training at Shed 10 will be conducted by several of the region’s top pugilists, including Middleton who already has 18 years experience in the sport.

‘‘We are going to try and get a few kids down there to train and to vent their anger out on bags instead of other people,’’ he said.

Anybody who is interested in training at Shed 10, 53 Kinross Street Long Gully, is urged to contact Jamie Middleton on 0406 630 970.

http://bendigo.yourguide.com.au/articles...topstories

NEW BASE: Chris Stewart (boxer and assistant trainer), Cliff Dess (head trainer), Jamie Middleton, Connor Wilson, Jimmy Bending and Chris McInally inside the Shed 10 boxing gym in Long Gully. Picture:

[Astrojewels]

I was surprised to see this article on here Richard, ah yes boxing it is a sport and an art. Nice picture boys!

[Richard]

I was surprised to see it too. I ran across it while surfing news stories, so I thought I’d post it here.

[teknohead]

Hey guys, first post here. Was just searching up trying to find if there were any records of my friends boxing matches on the internet. I'm best mates with Chris Stewart, the guy in the left of the photo...He should be turning pro soon!

[Richard]

Welcome to the forum teknohead,

That’s interesting that your best mates with Chris. I guess it’s a small world after all. I’m friends with Cliff Dess and he is a moderator in the Q&A forum.

You have full access now. I hope you enjoy your time here. :)

[teknohead]

Yea I used to train with Chris, he got me started into amatuer boxing, I had a couple of fights myself. I have only met Cliff very briefly, but Chris talks about him all the time, he is a much better trainer than his old one.

[teknohead]

Oh and now that I've had a chance to read the forum I don't think I'll be hanging around. Not my sort of thing, I'm sure you'll understand :)

Nice chatting. Seeya!

[Richard]

No problem, I know the topics here only appeal to a small segment of the population. Thanks for stopping by. :)

Take care