Evening star., 1939-01-06

ball. At best, it's a warmed lover
of the original article.
Eliminating all boys of amateur
experience is slightly insane. True,
there are hardened amateurs, but
they could be eliminated through
restrictions on age or years of ex-
perience. The Boys Club of WASH
ington, for instance. has abandoned
boxing for boys under is years old.
feeling youngsters who otherwise
may win college scholarship auto
matically would become ineligible
through their simon-pure socking
Where, under new rules, can a
boy learn to box? Too few high or
prep schools sanction the sport. The
rules permit boxing in Olympic try
outs. The Olympics supposedly rep
resent the finest any nation can pro-
duce in the way of amateur athlet-
les, yet collegiate officials rob boys
of an opportunity to learn and then
blandly inform them it is legal to
have their brains pulverized for
Uncle Sam.
Olympic tryouts aren't in
tended for novices. From
Olympic ranks have stepped
many outstanding profession.
ais.
In effect, it is equivalent to BAN
ming from collegiate football any
boy who has engaged in sandlot
grid game. 1t penalties boy for
being a boy In the same breath it
condemns the sport, brands it il
legal for amateurs, and condones it
for collegians.
Rule No. increases the weight
of gloves from 10 to IL ounces. Com
mendable, perhaps, for the heavier
divisions, but youthful bantam
weights, featherweights and perhaps
hghtweights will think they are
swinging concrete after the first
round. They will be tired, increas-
ing, rather than decreasing the pos
sibility of knockouts, the ultimate
aim of the idea.
Nine-Count Rule Okay.
Rule 8 says whenever a boxer is
knocked out he must not be touched,
except at the direction of a physi-
clan. Great stuff. Professional box
ing, with its burial handlers, who
dramatically and too vigorously
massage the back of a fighters
neck, could take a tip from this one.
And the District Boxing Commission
should pave the way.
Rule says when a boxer is
knocked down the bout cannot be
resumed until the referee has
counted to nine. even though both
contestants may be ready. Good
again. 1t will create confusion at
times, but too many boys are too
eager to get up and keep going at
any cost. At that, though, the
touchdown or home run of boxing
is knockout.
The bantamweight limit, in rule
5, is raised to 120 pounds and the
featherweight to 1877, so there will
be no incentive to make boxers COM
pete under their normal weight.
This one also should help, for there
has been too much harmful dieting
and steam heating of bodies which
should be stocked with healthy fuel.
Rule 6 brands as unethical train
ing with professionals at any time.
Maryland and Catholic University
teams, then have been unethical in
the past, for Heinie Miller and Eddie
LaFond, coaches at those respective
schools, have had professionals illus
trate fine points of the game to their
ring students. Maryland and Miller
had an undefeated team in 1887.
Catholic University and LaFond had
an undefeated team in 1888. We
hardly can see the harm in learning
to box correctly and pros are paid
to know more about that than other
folk. Collegiate boxing owes those
professionals who have trained with
its boys in the past debt of graf
itude, for it made collegiate boxing
less crude.
Can't CamOufage a Wallop.
Wisconsin, only Big Ten school
SPoAi1Oi AiiS tiiC cpOi l. IldS Uulit DOh
ing to the point where it attracts
crowds of 10000 to 5000 by using
amateur stars. 1t must abandon
that practice or be regarded as an
outcast.
Locally. Columbus University has
been plucking the best amateurs in
this sector. Maryland has had its
amateur stars and so has Catholic
U. Harvard, Princeton, Pennsylvania.
Pittsburgh and other important in
stitutions have discarded boxing and,
it seems, more will follow.
Somewhere there is a happy med
ium, but collegiate boxing still hasn' t
discovered it. And, incidentally, can
anyone offer sane explanation why
collegiate rules forbid applause ex-
cept between rounds.
In short. it may be collegiate
sport, but it amt boxing. You can't
camouf1age stiff sock in the puss.