By Tom Terzulli
Fordham junior Matthew Kligerman won the 2017 New York State Golden Gloves boxing championship at 178 pounds. Now, he awaits his first bout in the National Golden Gloves on May 3.
The Golden Gloves is the largest and oldest amateur boxing tournament in the world, originating in 1927. In its 90th year, the New York State branch is historically one of the best in the country. Notable names like Floyd Patterson, “Sugar Ray” Robinson, Riddick Bowe and Zab Judah have all stepped inside the fabled ring. Even current middleweight star Danny Jacobs, who just narrowly missed out on a decision victory against Gennady Golovkin back in March, won the title in 2007.
The Gabelli accounting major and computer science minor had to go through three opponents with very different styles.
His campaign began opposite Ihor Laba, a tough Ukrainian and former Massachusetts Golden Gloves champion. “He was a big, strong guy. He was very orthodox, kept his stance tight” said Kilgerman.
After dispatching the southpaw, Kilgerman faced Afunwa King in the semi-final. King, a winner of several prestigious tournaments, knocked out his first round opponent in under a minute. However, Kligerman weathered some big shots and beat the power puncher by unanimous decision.
“Him being a power guy made for the most exciting fight because I think I am pretty durable and I can punch pretty well. I’m a come-foward fighter and I think that makes for a pretty good fight,” he said.
The win advanced him to the finals at the Aviator Sports and Events Center in Brooklyn. There, he faced the crafty Michael Misa, who also has some MMA experience. “He was a big, tall 6’6” guy. He tried to punch and move and get out of the way” he said.
Kilgerman fought a tactical fight and overcame the reach advantage to win the title, a culmination of over five years of work.
“I started boxing when I was 15” he said. “My mom recommended I join a gym originally and I just decided to take it to the next level.”
He trains five to six days a week at John’s Boxing Gym in the South Bronx, just 20 minutes away from Fordham’s Rose Hill campus. Balancing school and a full time fight schedule might be difficult for some, but for Kilgerman, the busy days help him in both areas.
“It’s hard. It’s a lot of time putting in work,” he said. “But, I feel like in some ways they balance each other out. The discipline is good, it goes for everything. You gotta be devoted to both things 24 hours of the day and it’s good to exercise and have other things on your mind, it helps you stay focused.”
All of that focus is now on the National Golden Gloves in Lafayette, Louisiana.
“New York is one of the most competitive Golden Gloves tournaments,” he said. “So, at nationals some fights there will be a difference in completion, some there won’t be. Some guys will be worse than the guys I fought and some guys will be a little bit better. But, I’ve been around boxing for a while so I don’t think I’ll see anything that I haven’t seen before.”
The Golden Gloves is the largest and oldest amateur boxing tournament in the world, originating in 1927. With a bye on May 2, Kilgerman’s opening bout is set for May 3 at the Cajundome Convention Center.
