Metropolitan Police Commissioner visits Haringey Police Boxing Club
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe visited Haringey Police Boxing Club to meet a contingent of fighters who are hoping to compete in the Haringey Box Cup in June.
Hogan-Howe spent an hour at the gym, which is based on Tottenham High Road, talking to some of the members.
Gerry Willmott MBE, who founded the club in 1999 when he was a police officer in Tottenham, said: “He really enjoyed himself, he had a good chat with the boys.
“The problems are still out there for the youth. There’s nothing really for them to do and they need to be distracted away from the negative peer groups. Anything that gets them away from the negative side of the streets is worth doing.
“The council’s still struggling with their finances, they’re not supplying anything, so it’s down to people like us to do it for them.
“It’s grown from strength to strength every year. The club’s name has grown and the Box Cup has grown and grown every year.”
The ninth annual Haringey Box Cup – Europe’s largest amateur boxing event – will take place at Alexandra Palace between June 17 and 19 and the host club will aim to enter around eight of their own fighters.
