June 27, 2008 - With movies like “Girl Fight” and “Million Dollar Baby”, one has to wonder why female boxing is so underrated. Men and women alike have criticized the sport saying that the women were unskilled, untrained, and most of all unentertaining. Every once in a while there’s an athlete that defies the stereotype, an undeniable force not to be ignored. LaTonya King, 19, is that athlete.
LaTonya decided at 11, she would learn to box in order to protect herself. A year later, she would become the first black woman to ever win a Golden Gloves title match. By the time she was 15, she had six national titles under belt. With a training regiment that consisted of three hour sessions - five days a week, she refused to let her boxing interfere with her school work. She not only played clarinet, joined the cheerleading squad, and maintained straight A’s, she graduated valedictorian of her high school.
With boxing idols such as Roy Jones, Jr. and Laila Ali, it’s no surprise that her skills mimic those she admires. Emanuel Steward, Boxing Hall of Fame instructor, can not deny her talent. In Jet magazine he was quoted as saying ‘”She makes me more excited than any other boxer. I never thought in a million years I’d be training a girl.”
At 18, she became part of Nike Women’s Work 2 Play campaign highlighting female athletes from all sporting genres. Work 2 Play gives insight into just how hard these female athletes work to maintain their athletic edge.
As it stands now, King has earned eight national titles, three of them being Golden Glove titles, a Ringside National Championship, as well as an International Boxing Championship. At 19, she is pound for pound the best boxer in her weight class. With a record of 25 wins, 0 losses and 5 knockouts it isn’t hard to imagine that she would be much more than just a boxer.
You may be asking yourself, ‘What’s left for LaTonya King?’ Who knows, maybe she’ll turn pro.
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