\n
\nFrom a New Jersey teenage detention center to raising a boxing daughter to opening a boxing gym in Riyadh and training Saudi female boxers with the support of Princess Nouf, coach Lee Starks has come a long way in the last two decades.<\/p>\n
\nBoxing, as a spectator sport and activity, in Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Gulf Cooperation Council continues to grow at pace, as shown by last month\u2019s Rage on the Red Sea in Jeddah.<\/p>\n
\nWhile such high a profile event, which saw Oleksandr Usyk beat Anthony Joshua in the headline bout, no doubt grabbed the world\u2019s attention, perhaps less attention is given to the work being done at the grassroots level.<\/p>\n
\nAnd few are working as hard as Newark-born Starks is behind the scenes.<\/p>\n
\nHe has been coaching for over 20 years, first in his native US, then in Dubai and now in Riyadh, where his new boxing gym, TKO Fighters, will open this month.<\/p>\n
\nIn that time, he has won a number of titles and been honored by the city of Plainfield and the state for his achievements in amateur boxing, which include developing 29 champions who came out of his Plainfield Boxing Academy.<\/p>\n
\nThough boxing came relatively late for Starks, it proved to be his salvation. After getting into trouble as a teenager, he was in and out of detention centers until the age of 19.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cJoining my local boxing gym changed the direction of my life,\u201d said Starks. \u201cIt was difficult to catch up with all the talent in the gym having started the sport later than most of the fighters.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cI progressed fast, having quite a few fights before I had to stop boxing when my little girl was born in 1998,\u201d he said. \u201cThe amount of time I had to dedicate to training was limited, so I started coaching instead, helping the next generation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nThose benefitting from his expertise included his daughter, who by 2009 was No. 1 on the East Coast in her age group, and after the Ringside tournament became No. 2 in her category globally.<\/p>\n
\nIn 2017, Starks met his current wife, the Saudi singer Dalia Mubarak, while training for his third 100-mile ultramarathon.<\/p>\n
\nHe had just moved to Dubai and was training professional boxers while traveling back and forth to Riyadh until 2020.<\/p>\n
\nWhen the pandemic hit, he was forced to put down permanent roots in his Riyadh home. In 2021, he founded TKO Fighters, Saudi\u2019s first-ever boxing team.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cCOVID-19 made things challenging for boxers, and I found that my work in Dubai was dwindling in the aftermath of the pandemic.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nAs a champion for women\u2019s interests, Starks\u2019 wife encouraged him to take on a couple of female boxers in Riyadh, who were looking for a coach.<\/p>\n
\nOne, Sara Al-Shahrani, is a 27-year-old Saudi boxer who now has five fights under Starks and has just returned from a training camp in Ireland.<\/p>\n
\nThe other, Salma Fahad, is 19 years old, has had four fights in the last year, and was training in Texas this summer. She is the first Saudi boxer to win a gold medal abroad while competing in Kuwait.<\/p>\n
\nAlthough Starks did not initially set out to train amateurs in Saudi Arabia or help set a path for female boxers, it is obvious that based on his daughter\u2019s success, his trail-blazing wife and the full support of Princess Nouf bint Mohammed Al-Saud, he is playing an integral part in the promotion of female athletes and women\u2019s interests across the board.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cI have been trying to keep my boxers active locally by putting on shows but also by traveling to competitions in the GCC. It is important to give amateurs a chance to put their skills to the test,\u201d Starks said.<\/p>\n
\nIt was not surprising that his good work caught the attention of Princess Nouf, an avid boxing fan who fully sponsored Stark\u2019s last exhibition event in July, which he admitted would have been impossible without her and her team\u2019s support.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cBoxing is a sport that teaches self-discipline and psychology, which are all important values for us to lead a healthy lifestyle,\u201d Princess Nouf said. \u201cI started boxing when I was young and what really attracted me was the science and art of it. Some people view boxing as just a physically violent sport but it\u2019s not. For me, it taught me how to take the punches of life and how to [overcome] struggles.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cMy vision for Saudi Arabia is to add value to the current boxing platform, creating new programs and opportunities for fighters to train in a competitive environment and grow from the grassroots to the professional level.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\u200fPrincess Nouf believes every human being has the potential to be something special and she hopes to build up Saudi talent. She has plans to create training camps, events and educational programs to nurture talent from a young age.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cLastly, my goal is to be the right source of guidance to empower our Saudi women boxing athletes to compete in international tournaments and in the Olympics soon, inshallah,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n
\nStarks is grateful for the royal backing.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cPrincess Nouf\u2019s support has been invaluable not only to the boxers but to the boxing landscape here in Saudi Arabia,\u201d he said. \u201cTo develop a boxer from the age of 10 and have them not only represent their country but also win for their country is all down to the training programs. You must invest in your product. A good fighter who wins is an investment, and it takes careful consideration. It is my job to prepare my fighters accordingly.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cIt is such a disservice to send boxers out into the ring, completely unprepared,\u201d added Starks. \u201cBoxing is not a game. It is our job as coaches to protect them, which I believe starts in the gym, from the training, the sparring, and give them access to highly competitive training partners.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nTKO Fighters, Starks\u2019 gym, opens this month in Riyadh to house his stable of amateur boxers.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cWe all needed a place to call home, and now we have one. I couldn\u2019t be prouder,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cFor now, I probably should spend less time in the gym. But it is hard when you are so close to building something great. I really can\u2019t believe my gym will open this month. You never know where your path in life will lead and who will help you get there or the people you will inspire along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n
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