BY SCOTT HADDOW
Boxer Ryan Ranelli has been travelling a
tough road; one that has too often left him feeling lost and
unsure of his dream.
During his seven-year career, Ranelli has
spent many sleepless nights pondering the notion of giving
up.
He never did, even when the sport's
unexpected pitfalls and punishing abuse egged the fighter to
pack it in.
Ranelli stuck with his dream, and was
rewarded recently with winning a national championship.
Ranelli won the 51-kilogram Canadian
championship at the boxing nationals in St. Catharines in early
January.
He won by dethroning the current champion in
the final match.
"I stayed very busy through the whole fight,"
said the 20-year-old. "It was a close fight. I was down by two
points going into the fourth round and I had a huge round to
win the match by two points. It felt great to win. It's been an
up-and-down, discouraging road for me, but it was all worth it.
I was really happy to do it because my dad, Rick, was a
national champion and so were my four uncles."
Needless to say, papa Rick was overwhelmed
about his son's victory.
"I get all choked up thinking about it," said
Rick. "I am so proud of him and he won in the same weight class
that I won my national title in. He's an awesome kid...I saw
the fight and he fought so good. I couldn't be happier."
Ranelli has been training out of McGrory's
Boxing Gym in Hamilton under the watchful eye of Vinnie Ryan.
Ranelli moved to Hamilton in September with his girlfriend and
to attend college. He stepped through the doors of McGrory's
looking to keep his dream alive.
"There were a lot of times where I just felt
like giving up," said the scrapper. "I didn't know what keep me
going...A boxing career can be tough. I was fortunate I did
keep going. I learned that persistence and hard work pays
off."
And, it's paying off indeed. Ranelli now gets
a chance to compete for a spot on the Canadian team that goes
to the Commonwealth Games later this year.
"I go to the final team selection box offs in
Quebec to fight the same guy I beat at the nationals," said
Ranelli. "If I beat him again, I go to the Commonwealth Games.
It would be great to go to the Commonwealth games because
they're a stepping stone to the Olympics."
The box offs occur in Saint Hyacinthe from
Jan. 27 to 29.
Coach Ryan saw a boxer in need of a little
polishing. "When Ryan came to me...He had a great background in
boxing from (ONTC) head coach Gord Apolloni," said Ryan. "I
didn't have to do a lot of work with him, just shake off some
of the rust. He was a gem to work with."
Ranelli's performance at the nationals took
many by surprise, even Ryan.
"His win, in a way, was a big surprise
because he had never boxed at the national level before and he
was fighting the defending champ," said Ryan. "He was down by a
few points going into the fourth when I said to him not to come
crying to me later because you lost since you didn't give 110
percent. I also told him I needed everything he had in the
fourth round, and he went out and got the job done. It was well
deserved and now he
has the chance to represent Canada at the
Commonwealth Games."
