Last weekend, junior marketing major and boxing champion Lance Singleton and two of his teammates, Brandon Jean and Will Champagne, participated in the United States Intercollegiate Boxing Association’s (USIBA) National Championships in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Singleton won the tournament of the 152 pound weight group by the judges’ unanimous decision.
Singleton and his teammates are members of NSU’s Boxing Club, which was founded in fall 2012 and has 11 active members. The club was founded by Maeva Paolini, a former student who graduated two years ago.
Singleton wasn’t initially planning on competing in the tournament until three weeks before the competition late February. Although school and work took up his free time, about three weeks before the tournament, Singleton changed his mind and decided to take a chance and compete.
“Honestly, the experience is great. A lot of people get nervous when it comes to fighting, but I actually don’t find it that nerve-wracking,” said Singleton. “It’s a thrilling experience pushing yourself to the limit in the ring with everyone watching you and cheering you on.”
This wasn’t Singleton’s first time competing in the tournament, however. He has participated in the event six times and placed second last year.
Preparing for the event meant a lot of running. Singleton and his fellow boxing club members practiced extensively to get their bodies accustomed to the vigorous action in the ring.
“Cardio was key in preparing for the event,” he said.
Dieting was also another big factor in preparations. Since these boxing matches are categorized according to the weight of the contestants, each person has to maintain their weight range to maintain eligibility to fight for their weight class.
“In my case, I often found myself having to cut weight to reach the weight class I fit in,” said Singleton.
Equally as important as practicing and dieting, having a clear mind and remaining calm, despite the heavy amounts of stress this sport brings, is crucial.
“If you go in the ring hot-headed, you’ll most likely end up overexerting your body with wasted punches and actions,” said Singleton. “If you stay calm, you can think and react to punches faster.”
Using this strategy allows contestants to reserve the body’s energy for more necessary actions.
“Personally, my mind is cleared when I’m fighting, and all I hear is music playing in my head while my body reacts to the opponent almost subconsciously,” he added.
Singleton’s motivation comes from “Dragon Ball Z” and other anime shows he grew up watching. He constantly reminds himself that he needs to train as hard as the characters do.
“When I’m in that mind-state, I feel unstoppable,” said Singleton. “My training partners are also big motivators because they push me to keep going whenever I’m hitting a low point.”
Maintaining confidence throughout the match can also be a challenge, but Singleton found a way to get around that and simplified it for himself.
“I just think to myself, ‘He’s human and I’m human,’ so there’s not much he can do to me that I can’t do to him. I just have to make sure I do it better,” said Singleton.
The fact that boxing is an individual sport doesn’t pressure Singleton at all. Rather, he finds enjoyment in the sport because all of the achievements he makes are because of his individual efforts and no one else’s.
“If I win a fight, it’s because I solely conquered the other person with my own strength which is an awesome feeling to have,” said Singleton.
Not knowing who the opponent is makes Singleton prepare even more for prospective fights. He is often exposed to boxers with different body types and fighting styles to diversify his experiences and prepare to face any opponent he might encounter.
To take this achievement to the next level, Singleton plans to continue competing in more boxing matches and winning the belt again next year. As for the club, he hopes his achievement leads to the recognition of not only the club members, but also college boxing as a whole so others can find their passion in it.
“I even had the idea of competing in the national Golden Gloves tournament, but that’s just a dream for now,” said Singleton.
Singleton’s future with boxing won’t end when he graduates from NSU, but he doesn’t want to become a professional boxer. Instead, Singleton hopes to utilize his prospective marketing degree and start his own brand of fighting gear and his own gym.
“I’d love to sponsor fighters and give others the chance to chase their goals to become ‘Ultimate fighters,’” said Singleton. “Having the boxing club grow and flourish will be sort of a benchmark to show that I can achieve my future goal, and it’ll be great for me and my teammates to get the recognition for all of our hard work.”
Photo printed with permission from L. SINGLETON
