SAUK RAPIDS --  Who says boxing has to be only for guys? Annabel Kelly certainly doesn't think so. Kelly is more than just a high school student, she's an amateur boxer at St. Cloud Downtown Boxing and Wresting Club.

Kelly's sister first wanted to do boxing, so Annabel thought ‘I’ll go along’ and eventually she stuck with it. Kelly is hoping to break barriers and show other girls that the sport is not just for guys.

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"It just sounds weird to people cause they think it's more for guys, but there's actually a lot of girls and they don't know about that"

Her Coach Walt Mastey says, boxing went through a phase where you only saw guys, but now more girls are getting involved.

"We are actually getting a lot more girls getting into boxing says Mastey. It just kind of goes in phases"

Kelly has been learning Olympic-style Golden Glove boxing for four years. She's been in six fights and won one. Although she does not have her eyes set on going to the Olympics, she hopes to improve her technique and possibly box in college.

"From like my first fight, it was eye-opening because I didn't know it was this tough says Kelly, but yeah I mean that's definitely a cool thing to do, go to college and box"

However, to be a boxer is more than just winning a fight. You have to get the basic boxing technique down first.

"You want to make sure you get in a nice fighting stance says Mastey. Shoulder facing your target, front foot facing your target and you have to keep your chin covered at all times. When you throw punches, you want to  make sure you throw nice straight punches."

If you can get those techniques down and work hard. You are well on your way to becoming a boxer and for any girl that's thought or wanted to try boxing, Kelly says don't let the guys intimidate you. If you work hard enough, you can outwork all of them.

If you would like to try your hand out at boxing, visit St. Cloud Downtown Gym for a list of other classes offered.

Annabel Kelly
Annabel Kelly
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