(APR 14) Female professional boxer
Marianne ‘Golden Girl’ Marston announced this week the launch of her
new website - womensboxingclasses.com - as well as a series of
boxing, and boxing based fitness, classes at The Boxing Clinic in
Islington, North London and The Tokei Gym in Southwark, South
London.
In 2009 Marianne, the protégé of
Heavyweight Champion of the World Smokin’ Joe Frazier, returned
home to London following two years being based in Philadelphia,
PA, USA, where she is part of Cruiserweight Champion of the
World Steve 'USS' Cunningham's professional boxing team, and
noticed that the only type of Boxing fitness programmes being
offered to women in London were of the aerobic ‘Boxercise’ type.
The Boxing Fitness classes
Marianne created, are far removed from the aerobic 'Boxercise'
classes offered by most fitness centres and personal trainers.
These classes are the real deal and include many of the
conditioning exercises and boxing drills she personally uses in
her own, and athlete clients, competition preparations.
Taking a little time out from her personal training regime
Marianne said. “The recent announcement that Women’s Boxing will
be included in the London 2012 Olympics has led to a substantial
increase in the number of females actively participating in the
sport. It is estimated that there are now in excess of 700
amateur, in addition to the 16 currently licensed professional,
female boxers.
It has also led to an increased interest, by women, in boxing as
a fitness exercise. I’m not just talking about the highly
popular ‘Boxercise’ programmes, I mean actual boxing.
The classes I’ve created are 100% pure boxing skills and
professional athlete level conditioning drills. Each class
includes many elements of the regimes I have been put through
when being coached in Philadelphia; Firstly, by Joe and Marvis
Frazier and more recently with Nazeem Richardson, Shar’ron Baker
and Steve Cunningham.
The benefits of real Boxing routines, over ‘Boxercise’ and other
aerobic exercise, is that they are over 60% anaerobic, which is
far more effective for both weight loss and body toning. Other
benefits are increased cardiovascular function and muscle mass
as well as improved strength, power and speed.”
Women’s Boxing Classes by Marianne ‘Golden Girl’ Marston take
place at The Boxing Clinic, 29 St Albans Place, Islington,
London N1 0NX, on Tuesday and Thursday evening at 6.30pm and
from Monday 19th April at The Tokei Gym, 28 Magdalen Street,
Southwark, London SE1 2EN on Monday and Wednesday evening at
6.00pm.
- End -
NOTES FOR EDITORS
Whilst Boxing may be the sport Marianne is best known for today
it is not the only sport she has excelled at. As a youngster
Marianne competed both in swimming competitions, as part of the
Norwich Penguins, and fencing at County level.
At the tender age of fourteen Marianne, who at the time was
seeded sixth (foil), was selected to compete at Crystal Palace
for a place in the British Olympic Fencing squad following her
victory over the then current number one.
Unfortunately Marianne missed this golden opportunity due to a
family crisis.
Before the next Olympic trials beckoned Marianne decided that
her sporting endeavours would have to take a back seat to
academia. Marianne left her family home in Norwich and moved to
the capital to study at King's College London. Her studies paid
off with Marianne earning a much deserved B.Sc. (Hons).
Throughout her adulthood Marianne spent many hours per week at
the gym keeping fit but it was to be a number of years before
she returned to any form of competitive sport.
Her becoming a boxer was quite accidental, as was her studying
nutrition. Following a long undiagnosed illness, which turned
out to be coeliacs, Marianne returned to her local gym to bring
herself back to the levels of fitness she had previously
enjoyed. One day at the gym she noticed a poster offering boxing
based fitness sessions. Marianne met with the personal trainer,
Choleton Senior, advertising the sessions and signed up for the
course.
Following the first few sessions
Choleton stated that Marianne had what it takes to be a boxer
and advised her to find a proper boxing gym. Marianne did indeed
find a boxing gym, Gleason's London, but continued to work with
Choleton on her conditioning and additional boxing coaching.
It was around this time that Marianne first started
investigating nutrition, specifically to ensure that her diet,
which had become restricted due to her being gluten intolerant,
still provided all the elements required for her sporting
activities.
A few months later, whilst in Philadelphia on business, Marianne
accidentally met with Heavyweight Champion of the World Smokin'
Joe Frazier who after discovering she was a boxer invited her to
try out at his gym.
Joe was so impressed that he signed her up to his boxing team on
the spot and advised her to consider relocating to Philadelphia
to prepare for her professional debut.
Late in January 2008 Marianne decided to take Joe's advice and
committed herself to spending six months in America so that Joe
and his team could thoroughly prepare her. Unfortunately in
March 2008 Smokin' Joe Frazier's Gym closed down.
Not being someone to give up on her dreams Marianne went for a
trial with Percy (Buster) Custus at the James Shuler Memorial
Gym in West Philadelphia. Initially she was taken under the wing
of former Light Middleweight World Champion Robert 'Bam Bam'
Hines but due to her struggling to understand Robert's
instructions, because of his thick regional accent, she started
the search for a new coach.
Marianne was due to meet with two time Heavyweight World
Champion 'Terrible' Tim Witherspoon, with a view to him coaching
her, when she was approached by Livvy Cunningham, the wife and
manager of Cruiserweight World Champion Steve 'USS' Cunningham,
to become part of Team 'USS' Cunningham.
Firmly now part of Team 'USS' Cunningham Marianne was introduced
to Shar'ron Baker, who was to be her day to day coach, and
'Trainer of the Year' Nazeem Richardson, who had just become
Steve's fight trainer.
Nazeem introduced Marianne to his 'Concrete Jungle' conditioning
routines - the very same routines that he uses when preparing
his famous charges Bernard 'The Executioner' Hopkins, 'Sugar'
Shane Mosley, Steve 'USS' Cunningham etc. for Championship
fights - which became the basis of her personal training
routine, and now part of her conditioning routine for clients.
In January 2009 Marianne signed a twelve fight professional
contract with Bionic Bull Promotions.
In February 2009 Marianne returned to the UK, to obtain the visa
required to compete in America, and Gleason's Boxing Gym, London
where she was seen by former Olympic coach Terry Edwards MBE.
Terry was so impressed with Marianne that he asked if he could
work with her.
In May 2009 Gleason's Gym closed. John Rooney Jnr, who managed
Gleason's, took over the facility and launched Rooney's Boxing
Gym on 1st June 2009.
In September 2009 Marianne created a ladies only boxing class at
Rooney's Gym, the success of the classes was immediate and
within a month was increased to four classes per week.
Marianne, who already receives high levels of media interest for
her boxing, started to receive press enquiries regarding her
considerable coaching skills, and her women only classes. In
January 2010 alone Marianne and her ladies class were featured
in The Sunday Telegraph's Stella Magazine - Health and Fitness
special - and received the accolade of being named as one of the
top five personal trainers in London by Time Out Magazine
(London's Best Personal Trainers feature).
In March 2010, just after the classes were increased to five
days a week to include a class for the intermediate and
experienced John Rooney decided to take the classes in house.
In April 2010, Marianne approached The Boxing Clinic with the
view to offering women only classes at their gym in Islington,
London N1. The Boxing Clinic's Director, Graham Boylan welcomed
Marianne with open arms and immediately offered her slots on
Tuesday and Thursday evenings. A few days later Tokei Gym, in
Southwark, South East London offered Marianne a 6pm slot on
Monday and Wednesday.
Also in April 2010, Marianne's classes were also positively
reviewed by Holland & Barratts Healthy Magazine
PHOTO CREDIT : Gianluca (Rio) Di Caro
FURTHER INFORMATION/INTERVIEW REQUESTS
For further information or interviews with Marianne ‘Golden
Girl’ Marston please contact:
Gianluca (Rio) Di Caro
JustListen2This Publicity & Promotion
London, UK & Philadelphia, USA
