IN THIS ISSUE

  • A MESSAGE FROM ALLY

  • BOXING BABES PART 2

A MESSAGE FROM ALLY

We heard about Coach Annabel and Caitlin, now it is time to learn a little more about Coach Viviana and Lizza, find out a little about their road to the World Champs. On a side note…. Couples who play together stay together!

THE BOXING BABES Part 2

My journey to the ring began very prestigiously… It all began in my Tuesday night Body Combat class as I imagined I was Buffy (the Vampire Slayer) while I kicked and punched my way through Britney Spears’ tracks, plus those of other now-forgotten popstars.

And I loved every moment of it.

Years later, I ended up at a proper fight gym, terrified of the idea of sparring. To help me get over that fear, I decided to have a semi-pro MMA fight after seven months of training. It was an extreme act, I know. But it worked! I overcame that fear. And that disastrous fight (I was choked out in the first round by a girl who’d been fighting for four years) led me to finding my real love: boxing.

I’ve only had eight fights, and in that time I’ve won gold in King of the Ring, Novice Titles and won silver at the NSW state titles, and now I’m preparing for the World Qualifiers! I truly believe if it wasn’t for having Ben as a coach, plus being surrounded by the insanely talented girls in our team, there’d be no way I’d have gotten to this point so quickly. I’m so grateful.

It’s tough balancing working in magazines, plus an intense training load, but coming into Boxing Works and training with my closest friends – including my hubby Brad – makes it all worth it. Speaking of Brad, I met him during a boxing class when we were forced to partner together. Just another reason I love the sport.

Viviana emigrated from Colombia to Australia eight years ago and began boxing approximately four years later as way to improve fitness and relieve stress.

First participating in a corporate fight night in 2014, she has since become National Champion on 54kg division in her 8th Fight, the number one 51kg boxer in NSW and was the Silver Medalist at the National Commonwealth Games qualifiers last year, missing out on selection on a razor-thin split decision.

Over the last 2 years she has competed in over 30 fights, including winning multiple State Championships, the 2016 Australian National Championship and the State of Origin NSW vs QLD Championship. She has represented Australia in both New Zealand and PNG, claiming victories over both countries’ national representatives.

Her goal this year is to win Gold in the qualifiers for the World Championships in India, securing her opportunity to represent Australia the country that has become my home.