Fort Huachuca, Arizona--Following the June 9 preliminary bouts, the 2016 All Army Boxing Championships concluded June 11 at Barnes Field House after a fitting moment of silence for Muhammad Ali.
In each of the eight bouts, vocal members of the audience quickly chose a favorite boxer from either the red or blue corner. Cries of "Go Red," or "Go Blue," could be heard throughout the event.
During the first round, a 165-pound exhibition bout, the boxers seemed well matched, but in the end, Sgt. Steven Bentancourt, Fort Drum, New York, defeated Pfc. Dondre Newbill, Fort Drum, 4-1.
As a result of the nine-minute action in the 165-pound weight class medal match, Pfc. Dantrell Morris, Fort Drum, captured bronze by besting Sgt. Cody Davis, Fort Carson, Colorado, 3-2.
During the 123-pound weight class gold/silver match, Pfc. Daniel Bailey of Fort Hood, Texas, grabbed the gold from Spc. Charles Williams, Fort Carson, Colorado.
The evening's strongest matches began with bout four, the 132-pound weight class gold/silver match, which drew cheers and applause from the crowd of boxing fans who came to cheer the Soldiers on.
Spc Andre Jeater, Colorado U.S. Army Reserves, stopped Colorado Reservist Pfc. Vandy Rem and earned his second All Army Boxing gold. His next goal is to press forward and try to get to the Olympics.
A brief intermission followed. During that time, Fort Huachuca Garrison Commander Col. Thomas A. Boone awarded gold medals to three female boxers who were uncontested in their weight class.
During the 141-pound weight class gold/silver match, Spc. Trey Alexander, Louisiana Army National Guard, defeated Pfc. Astrid Amanda, New York Army National Guard.
Competing in the 152-pound weight class gold/silver match, Pfc. Amin Mitchell, Fort Carson, dominated over Spc. Alex Jean, Fort Drum, 5-0, to earn his gold.
1st Lt. Logan Burns, Fort Benning, Georgia, took the 165-pound weight class gold/silver match 5-0 in a solid defeat over Staff Sgt. Noah Butkovich, Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
Emerging as the victor in the 201-pound weight class gold/silver match, Spc Adrian Tillman of Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, defeated 2nd Lt. Kendall Harris, Red Cloud, Korea, to earn a gold medal.
During a June 10 interview with All Army Boxing (AAB) Head Coach Staff Sgt. Quentin McCoy, the coach described how he became involved with coaching, what he looks for in potential All Army boxers and how Soldiers can get involved in the program.
McCoy explained how he got involved in coaching AAB although he had never coached before.
"The head coach of the [Army's] World Class Athlete Program (WCAP) reached out to me in 2012," McCoy said. At that time, the Soldier had been involved in WCAP as a boxer for six years, and he said the head coach liked his leadership style and felt he'd be an ideal coach and mentor for other boxers. The coach himself is a career Soldier who has been in the Army for 14 years.
The resident of Hot Springs, Arkansas, brought 30 boxers to this year's AAB Trial Camp, 27 men and three women. During the three weeks before the fight, injuries and other factors brought the number down to 24 total.
"Some of the Soldiers said it was too hard for them and asked to go home," McCoy stated. He admitted that not everyone can handle the intensive training.
"All Army Boxing is not a vacation, and we didn't come here to sightsee," he said.
The coach explained the AAB selection process.
Soldiers go online to "All Army Sports" and fill out an application, listing their information and boxing experience. They must also obtain their commander's consent. Boxing is open to Soldiers of all ranks, but the cutoff age is 40.
"Boxing is a young man's sport," McCoy explained. "It's rough. As I got older, it took me a lot longer to recover from some of these fights."
Boxers who aspire to join the program should not think it's going to be easy. "It's very tough mentally, physically, emotionally, to be able to deal with this for [the amount of time involved]. It's very humbling as an adult. We tell them what time we're going to practice, what they're going to do. It's very challenging. We tell them to get out of their own way. They're not going to be able to do things their way. It's just not going to go like that."
McCoy screens each application individually. He also makes personal calls to each new applicant to discuss their experience and his expectations.
"Once this is done, and as long as their chain of command approves, they will be able to come," McCoy said. "Once they get here, I look for certain qualities to see if they are determined, if they have the will to compete, if they have the Warrior Ethos to never accept defeat, never quit. The Army Values are forefront here."
The coach described the practice schedule which he said also varies. This year, Soldiers were divided into two groups, the red team and the blue team.
"Every day, generally in the morning, we have some sort of cardio or strength training session which could last anywhere from one to two hours. Then they have time for breakfast, showers and recovery."
In the afternoon, teams take turns practicing for more than two hours in the gym. Around 7 p.m. the boxers practice for three to four hours in their weight classes. Training takes place for at least six hours a day, six days a week. On Sundays, coaches and boxers meet and jointly discuss areas needing improvement. Each boxer's workout is individually tailored.
"The first thing we let them know is they're here to box, to focus on the mission at hand. Their mission is to get ready to compete and move forward."
McCoy explained that it takes a week for some of the boxers to adjust to the altitude here. "Our boxers are elite professionals. They come in decent shape for boxing. This is more extreme than your average workout in the gym," he said.
During the camp, coaches seeded the boxers based on their potential and training. In weight classes where there were multiple boxers, some advanced to higher levels based on their attitude and "Soldier concept."
"You have to have the right attitude," McCoy added. "You have to be in the right place at the right time in the right uniform. You have to be a good teammate and listen to your coaches. Everything had a part in it."
Most boxers competed in the finals, including those who did not advance to the next level, except for those uncontested in their weight class.
The coach said he had no expectations about the June 9 match nor did he make any predictions about the June 11 match.
"I wasn't surprised and was very pleased with how they all competed. Every single one of the boxers went out there to compete and win. I'm neutral. I want all of them to win, but I know that can't happen. All of them performed, and I'm proud of them."
The coach explained the AAB matches at Fort Huachuca are timed to take place before the Police Athletic League (PAL) National Boxing Championships in California, and the AAB winners and those uncontested in their weight class advance to that level. This year's competition takes place June 20-25 in Oxnard.
"I am predicting that we are going to go out there and get another trophy," said McCoy, adding that boxers have taken two others in the past.
This is the coach's fourth year bringing boxers to the fort and he's grateful to the boxers' units for letting them compete.
"I thank the units whose Soldiers competed for allowing them to come out here," McCoy said. "I also thank the Fort Huachuca community and those at Barnes Field House. It's been a great experience. Everyone on Fort Huachuca is always very receptive to All Army Boxing and very supporting of everything we do. We do not get any 'no' answers. We get help with anything we need, whenever we need it, even after duty-hours. Fort Huachuca is awesome."
Boxers departed Fort Huachuca for their home units on June 13. Those competing in the PAL competition left for California on June 16.
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