Wednesday, March 5, 2003
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Wednesday, March 5, 2003 |
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Peachtree City resident training amateur boxers By MICHAEL
BOYLAN Peachtree City resident Scott Sebastian has boxing in his blood. Sebastian's uncle, Billy Soose, was world middleweight champion in 1941 and is in the World Boxing Hall of Fame in California, while his father, Gene, was a boxing champ of the South Pacific while fighting in World War II. Sebastian himself was a two-time Golden Glove title holder and is now training several athletes from the area with hopes that they will one day hold Golden Glove titles. The athletes meet nearly seven days a week to train, but they don't meet at a typical gym they meet at Sebastian's house. Sebastian's garage looks like the inside of a boxing gym, with speed bags and heavy bags hanging amongst a myriad of boxing memorabilia collected by Sebastian and his relatives over they years. The space is also filled with every piece of equipment needed for boxers, including training and fighting gloves, shoes, trunks, tape, first aid kits and more. The only thing missing is the ring, and that is in the backyard. "The president of Georgia Amateur Boxing heard I was trying to start a gym to train boxers on the southside," said Sebastian. "One day he called me up and put me in touch with Guy Webb, who donated all of the equipment." It took three trucks to bring the $8,000 worth of equipment to the house, which is serving as the temporary home to Sebastian's Boxing Clinic as Sebastian seeks a more permanent space that can house his students, the equipment and, most importantly, the official size ring. Sebastian was a member of USA Boxing and the Georgia Amateur Boxing Association and as an official refereed and judged over 160 fights. He started offering his services as a personal trainer last year using the training techniques that boxers use. That eventually evolved into Sebastian seeking students to train to become amateur boxers and hopefully, one day, Sebastian will be a trainer for a pro. His students range in age from 12 to 25 and several of them have served in the United States Army. Many of the students saw a flier that advertised Sebastian's Boxing Clinic and that was all it took to get them in the door. Now, several months later, many of the students are like brothers and a few of the young boxers should be ready to give it a go in a Golden Gloves competition in Rome in April. Aaron Carver is the team's captain. He is 25 years old, a McIntosh graduate and a current student at Gordon College. While in the Army, Carver was a paratrooper for the 82nd Airborne and also served as a combat engineer. He likes the skill and the strategy necessary to box and is looking forward to the matches in April. Jay Lin, 21, is a resident of McDonough and also served in the Army in transportation. Lin finds that boxing has given him confidence but he also likes the comradery that he has found. "The team is like a brotherhood," said Lin. "Mr. Sebastian is like a second father to me." The family connection is important because of the time that is involved in training. The students are constantly working out or running or sparring. Sebastian's wife, Melinda, is also a boxing fan and is very supportive of the group. Peachtree City residents Chris Nolin, 21, and Ben Dixon, 23, knew each other from working out at Gold's Gym. Dixon started working at Sebastian's Boxing Clinic first and encouraged Nolin to come out and give it a try. Nolin is a student at the State University of West Georgia and loves the conditioning that training gives him, while Dixon, a student at Gordon College, admits he likes the punching and blocking. For training, Sebastian finds that training for boxing gives athletes everything they need. "It really is the greatest conditioning," Sebastian said. "It combines cardio with strength, hand-eye coordination, rhythm and timing." Chris Jones is another McIntosh graduate in the boxing clinic. He recently graduated from Stetson University and comes to boxing with an extensive background in martial arts. Jones is attracted to boxing because of the way it makes him feel. "It is not two people just wailing away on each other," Jones explains. "It's a lot harder than it looks." Sebastian agrees, describing boxing as a physical chess match. Other members of the team who were not present when this reporter visited the gym were Anthony Lewandowski, 14, of Sharpsburg and his little brother, Evan, 12, who are hoping to one day box in the junior olympics; Sean Spoto, 22, of Fayetteville and David Roten, 22, of Fayetteville. Roten is another student with ties to the Armed Services. The students have learned a lot in their time with Sebastian but their most important lesson they learn, one he teaches every day, is the importance of safety. As trainer to all of the students, each student must obey Sebastian's commands or their match, sparring or otherwise, is over. Though amateur boxing is a relatively safe sport, due to short rounds (three two-minute rounds in a match), headgear, mouthpieces and bigger gloves, if the boxer doesn't know what he is doing or doesn't listen to his trainer, someone can get hurt. In spending time with Sebastian and his students, it is evident how much respect Sebastian commands. The boxers listen to Sebastian's advice as they go through their training and all of them appear hungry to improve. "These guys had character and integrity when they walked in the door," said Sebastian. "Now, they are learning the discipline of boxing." The Golden Glove competition will take place Thursday-Saturday, April 3-5 in Rome. After that, Sebastian will also offer classes at the Kedron Fieldhouse and Aquatic Center on Tuesday nights and Saturday afternoons. For more information on Sebastian's Boxing Clinic or his upcoming classes, phone 770-487-8284 or send an e-mail to Sebastiansboxing@peoplepc.com
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