A visit to the ‘Ananas’ where Cuba trains its boxing champions

By Marco HademFor hours now the sun has been beating down on the rooftops of Havana Vieja. Despite the heat, life is pulsating in the old quarter of the Caribbean metropolis in northern Cuba.Streets and squares are firmly in the hands of sweating tourists, who with coveted hard currency in their pockets are strolling through the narrow cobblestoned alleys or among the stalls of the Habaneros vendors.This is home to nine-year-old Alberto Gonzalez. Since his birth he has lived in Havana, a city of special charm where history comes alive in old things that have not yet been discarded.When Alberto is not playing with his friends on the street or in school, he is living his passion for the old sport of boxing. “When I grow up I want to study sports,” he says, looking down, a bit embarrassed. Then he quietly adds: “And I want to be a champion.”His enthusiasm for boxing is no coincidence. After all, his father of the same name is one of the island’s most famous boxing trainers. The powerfully built senior has trained many boxers during his long career and has seen promising talents come and go.Today, with a combination of utter commitment and great expertise, he teams up with several other top trainers at the “Caribbean Ananas (Pineapple)” - the nickname Cubans have given to their state-run boxing school, the Gimnasio de Boxeo Rafael Trejo in der Calle Cuba 815, near the harbour.Boxing’s status in Cuba differs from that than in many other countries. Boxers aren’t thought of here as ruffians, but as sportsmen with high technical skills, power, stamina and strength. For young Alberto, however, these weren’t the reasons why as a little boy he wanted to get into the ring. “Boxing is a sport that is a lot of fun,” he explains.Elegance, speed, and technical perfection — Cuban boxers enjoy a special worldwide reputation. The tropical island can claim many an Olympic gold medal. Only the United States is more successful. So it comes as no wonder that many boxers from Europe and America make their way to the “Ananas” boxing gym in order to train for a few weeks.Besides foreign boxers, tourists are also welcome in the “Ananas” gym. But those wanting to see the historic sporting site must be patient, since there are no fixed opening hours or training times. The best way is to try paying a visit in connection with a tour of the old city quarters.Employees at the boxing school can be asked about current training times or fight dates. In any event, it’s worth paying a visit. The Cubans like taking some time out to show visitors the stadium or to tell a few anecdotes. Knowing some Spanish is not a bad idea for this.Within a few weeks, the youngsters are aiming for victory in the annual sports competitions where the various boxing schools around Cuba go up against each other. Alberto also wants to emerge a winner from the school championships, just as all the other boys who have found their way to the dusty, yet impressive, inner court of the boxing school.Amid the often crumbling stone facades of the surrounding houses, the wooden grandstand next to the ring has the air of having grown there.Today, all the boxing pupils are on time, for the older Alberto and his co-trainers value discipline highly. “This is necessary in order to be successful and to survive in the ring,” says one trainer, Miguel, who boxed for a while in Germany.In order to build up their condition, the youngsters are made to sprint up and down the steep stairs of the seating, do pull-ups on steel bars and exhaust themselves jabbing at the large and small punching bags. “It’s better that they exhaust themselves here with a purpose than out on the street,” trainer Alberto says.Every so often there’s a shrill sound. Besides the clear instructions, emphatic expressions and unambiguous gestures, the trainers’ whistles are the most important means of communication. When the whistle is blown, there is just one meaning for the pupils – “Into the ring!”While the younger Alberto and a clearly skinnier boy are having huge boxing gloves put on, the other youngsters gather around the ring. The older boys, who previously had been in training away from all the excitement, also start to gather on the edge of the boards which mean everything in the world to the boxers.What follows inside the boxing ring after the next whistle is Cuban boxing in the purest form. “Baila! (dance),” Alberto commands the boys. And it works. Their movements immediately look more dance-like. But the dancing is only done with the feet — the hands are hard at work. Nobody gets spared in training. “Nobody gets spared in a fight,” Alberto points out. “With boxing, that is simply not possible.” – DPA