by Connor Danik
Senior Enovi Molina-Chevez boxes in amateur fights and currently holds a record of 8-2. She competed in the Junior Olympic National Championships 2011 in Alabama and won the Bronze Medal in her weight division.


When did you get into boxing?
I started kickboxing three years ago for self defense. I saw how dedicated the boxers in Five Star Gym trained and I was interested in learning how to really throw punches. I was offered to train at the gym for free, as part of getting kids off the streets and not involved in gangs and violence. I mainly started this because I was not happy during this part of my life. I needed something to relieve my stress and boxing really helped to release the stress in a productive manner.
 
Where do you train? What kind of training do you do?
I train at the Boys & Girls Club in Elizabeth, with my coaches Mervin and Don Gibbons. I run 10 laps around the track and do 10 sprints back and forth with three minutes of shadow boxing with weights in between the sprints. I also run up and down the bleachers and do pad work, finishing the workouts with 20 minutes of jumping rope. Or we are at the gym, jumping rope, shadow boxing, weightlifting, running up and down stairs, push ups, sit ups, hitting the bags and pads.
 
How is boxing different from other sports?
Boxing isn’t for everyone. It’s for those who do not quit easily and push past their pains. You have to have a lot of heart, dedication, mental capacity and a ton of stamina, which is probably the hardest part about boxing. I have sacrificed a lot of my time, effort, and life for this sport because I truly love it.
Do you think your coaches treat you any differently because you are a female boxer?
My trainers do not train me any differently than the male boxers there because they believe girls can do anything boys can do. The men that I spar with take it a bit lighter than if they were sparring another man. I do all the exercises that they do, but sometimes they make it a little lighter. They treat me just like “one of the guys” and jokingly tell me to suck it up. They are kind people who truly care about me and when it comes down to fighting, they definitely want to make sure I win.
 
Do you consider yourself as a pioneer of woman’s boxing, encouraging girls to box?
No, because I don’t talk about my experiences a lot. I do encourage other people to try boxing and see if they like it. I also encourage them to take self-defense classes because girls need to be able to defend themselves. I would never discourage people from doing this sport because it is a very different experience, especially the experience of getting hit in the face.
 
What part of boxing do you need to improve on the most?
A part of boxing that I believe I need to work on most is my stamina. I hate running in the cold but I have to do it. Weather really isn’t an excuse for my coach. Stamina is one of the biggest things in boxing that could help you win or make you lose. I hate running but I hate losing even more.
 
Do you plan on continuing to box after high school?
Yes, I will hopefully train enough and get more fights under my belt. It has positively impacted my life in ways that I couldn’t even begin to describe. I plan to do boxing until I start intensely studying to become a lawyer.