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3 Fires Martial Arts Academy hosted a boxing fundamentals workshop delivered by former Olympic Boxing Coach Gord Apolloni.
The workshop held at 3 Fires Martial Arts Academy at the Main Street location, was pulled together by 3 Fires sparring instructor Don Boulay who had been hoping to expose North Bay students to Apolloni's unique coaching experience for some time, and finally it came together.
Gord Apolloni is the head coach for Top Glove Boxing Academy in Sudbury.
As a boxer, Apolloni was a four-time National Champion, in 1979 he placed 6th at the worlds which set him up for the Olympics.
Unfortunately Canada boycotted the1980 Olympic games and Gord missed out on his opportunity to attend.
Still passionate for boxing he became a coach and in 1996 he was picked as team coach for the 11 Canadian Boxers who attended the Atlanta Summer Olympic Games. In 2012, Apolloni also accompanied the 18 and under Canadians boxers to the worlds in Germany who fought to podium wins.
Apolloni and his gym was hand picked in 2013 by Prison Break star Dominic Purcell while he was in town filming "A Fighting Man".
Gord is currently finishing up a contract with Boxing Canada to revamp the technical manuals; essentially coaching the coaches.
The four-hour workshop covered boxing fundamentals such as the pivot principal, boxing stances, punches, and movement. Apolloni also reviewed targeted training factors based on age, weight, and anatomy. Leveraging quantitative analysis of world boxing programs, Apolloni discussed specific training strategies for national athletes, and relayed scheduling and preparation concepts leading up to high level competition.
Gord emphasized structured learning, and punctuated often, "learn the concept slow at first with accuracy, and then increase the speed gradually."
The workshop was well attended by over fifteen students of all ages who appreciated Apolloni's unique blend of expert skills coaching, detail and a great sense of humour. Many students walked away with some complimentary knowledge, and new skills, but many also left that day with big smiles.
3 Fires Martial Arts Academy offers a variety of martial arts education and training to the community by providing tools to develop confidence, diligence and tenacity in a safe and affordable environment.
To find out more information about 3 Fires Martial Arts Academy visit http://3fires.ca/
