12 Soldiers from all across Germany traded blows and even knocked each other unconscious, yet not a single Article 15 was issued. No, the Army has not gone soft on punishment, this was boxing. In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, the Wiesbaden Fitness Center hosted an amateur boxing match Oct. 20.
The organizer of the event was Jon Lacey, Moral, Welfare and Recreation sports programmer.
"Although this is a boxing match, the focus is still on Hispanic Heritage Month," Lacey said. "Hispanics have a long tradition of excellence when it comes to boxing and this event is meant to highlight that."
The event was conducted in open tournament style with mostly novice boxers. The evening featured six bouts with weight classes ranging from lightweight all the way up to super heavyweight.
Because the event was amateur boxing, which relies more on technique than brute force, the judges played a greater role than normal.
"As a judge the main thing I look for is adequate punches, ones that actually connect," said Travis Watford, an MWR employee and judge for the event. "It takes a bit of practice because you have to know what to look for."
An ex-boxer himself, Watford knows all about the mechanics of boxing and what makes a good amateur bout.
"A good amateur bout relies on good pairings of fighters, which we have tonight," Watford said. "You also want fighters who are knowledgeable about the sport."
For those thinking of entering the ring themselves, Watford offered the following advice.
"You need to get the proper training, even wearing protection you can still get hurt," Watford said. "It can take about one or two months of solid training before you're ready to step into the ring."
Beyond pure physical ability, boxing also requires a very high level of endurance and knowledge of the fundamentals of the "sweet science" in order to succeed, said Watford.
The event drew a good sized crowd to the fitness center and although the event got started late their enthusiasm never did damper, said Lacey.
"I think the appeal of boxing is that it is a stand alone sport, it is all on the individual," Lacey said. "I want these boxers to come away with a competitive spirit."
It was this competitive spirit that drove Daniel Sanders into the ring on Friday night.
"I got into boxing because I like to try new things," Sanders said. "My main motivator was my platoon sergeant."
To prepare him for the rigors of the boxing ring, Stephen Mose made Sanders and his fellow boxers do up to two extra hours of physical training a day.
"The extra PT was mostly muscle failure to help build up your endurance," Sanders said. "We also did a lot of sparring."
This was Sanders second boxing match, having fought previously in early September.
"My first fight went well, I got a first round knockout," Sanders said. "Tonight I'm going to take it slow and see what my opponent has."
Sanders opponent, Spc. Eric Mendivi, also of Charlie Co., 123rd MSB, 1St AD, wound up having too much for Sanders, who lost by knock out.
Among the supporting staff for the event was MWR sports specialist Chris Cornelison, who served as referee.
"I have been refereeing these types of matches for three years," Cornelison said. "My job is to insure the safety of the boxers, make sure the fight is clean and insure the safety of the boxers."
When refereeing a fight between novice fighters, which that night's card featured, the refereeing has to pay special attention, said Cornelison.
"Sometimes novice boxers don't know how much abuse they can take and try to take too many hits," Cornelison said. "During these fights the referee really has to be on his toes and know when to send the fighters to their corners or even stop the fight."
The event lasted nearly two hours and featured two fights that were decided by knockout. In the end the fighters proved their metal and everyone had a good time, said Lacey.
"The first three fights were very good and the evening went well despite some technical problems that kept us from starting on time," Lacey said. "This whole event was for the Soldiers, everyone enjoyed themselves and most importantly no one got seriously hurt."
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