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ALAN KEMP TO BE INDUCTED INTO THE BUFFALO BOXING HALL OF FAME!
Tuesday, July 12th, 2011
As you all know, Alan Kemp runs our Classic Boxing program at LA Boxing Lake Forest. Those of you who take class on Tuesday and Thursday evenings and Saturday mornings see Alan working in the ring teaching the “sweet science” of boxing. Well, we are excited and very proud to announce that Alan is being inducted into the Buffalo Boxing Hall of Fame next month.
Below is the official press release – it is a great read and you will discover some terrific facts about Alan such as his boxing nick name (based on the long pony tail Alan wore in his boxing days), his Golden Gloves titles (three, that’s right, three!) and his growing up and boxing in the very tough Buffalo New York boxing world!
So read on and make sure to congratulate Alan next time you see him. And if you want to hone your boxing skills and learn the intracacies of boxing, make sure to speak with Alan about enrolling in his Classic Boxing program. Beginners are definitely welcome!
OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE
ORANGE COUNTY, CA – Alan Kemp first garnered attention as a charismatic young man from Buffalo who juggled dual lives as a student and boxer. Then, as a pro, it was the long hair that earned him the nickname “Pony Boy”. But throughout it all, when the bell rang, Alan Kemp’s fists would always steal the show, earning him three Golden Gloves titles and 12 professional wins during the middleweight division’s Golden Age in the 1970’s.
Now, Kemp’s accomplishments and positive representation of the sport, in and out of the ring, will be celebrated on August 5, 2011, when he is inducted into the Buffalo Boxing Hall of Fame.
“It is quite an honor for me to join such a distinguished array of boxers in the Buffalo Boxing Hall of Fame,” said Kemp. “As a boy, I remember well the outstanding talent and dedication of many of them as I watched their careers flourish; Joey Giambra, Bobby Scanlon, Jackie Donnelly and others made a deep impression on me that I still carry today. These were men who were committed to excellence and fought with style and panache.”
Joining Kemp as members of the Buffalo Boxing Hall of Fame’s Class of 2011 are “Baby” Joe Mesi, Harry Fuller, and Dick Loadman. Previous inductees, which are voted upon by members of Ring 44, the Buffalo Veteran Boxers Association, include Jimmy Slattery, Rocky Kansas, Frank Erne, Joey Giambra, Don Elbaum and Lee Oma.
A boxer since the age of nine, when his father Al – a former fighter and noted trainer – brought him to the gym to teach him how to defend himself from local bullies, Kemp was a prodigy in the sport. Winner of 45 of 52 amateur bouts, Kemp won three Golden Gloves titles and competed in two National Golden Gloves tournaments, all while juggling a job and his courses at Canisius College.
In March of 1972, the popular local hero, who gained mainstream notoriety for his long pony tail, turned pro at Buffalo’s Memorial Auditorium with an 81 second knockout of Jimmy Jenkins. Kemp went on to compile a 12-0 record with 11 knockouts before retiring after back-to-back defeats to former National Amateur Champion Morris Jordan and Olympic Gold Medal Winner and future top contender Ronnie Harris.
Not ready to leave the sport he loved, Kemp transitioned into life as a trainer, and as a USA Boxing Coach he has influenced the lives of countless young men and women over the years as he delivers the lessons that only “the sweet science” can teach.
Currently working out of LA Boxing Lake Forest in Orange County, California, Kemp may have moved out west, but he’s still Buffalo to his core, and it’s the hard-nosed attitude and values he picked up in New York that remain with him to this day, making his induction into the Buffalo Boxing Hall of Fame even more meaningful to him.
“One day when I was about 8 years old, I came home crying, telling my Dad that the neighborhood bullies had been pushing me around again,” Kemp recalled. “I pleaded for his help. He told me that he could teach me how to defend myself, but that I would have to put in the hard work and the time to learn how to box. I agreed to do it.
“What made the next formative years so wonderful was that I got to spend so much time with my father. We were best buddies and spent untold hours together at Singer’s Gym, or on the baseball field, or at the movies. What I didn’t know then was that I wasn’t only training for boxing – I was training for life.
“My Dad was an extraordinary teacher. He had incredible patience, guiding me and eventually my younger brothers, Brian and Randy, and many other boys on a remarkable journey via the rigors of boxing toward manhood. He taught us that we must always give our best, to be humble and a good sport.
“As a boxing coach, I strive to bring some of the same passion and dedication to the sport that my father did so generously.”
For more information on the Buffalo Boxing Hall of Fame induction ceremony, please visit http://www.ring44.com
