UPDATE: This story has been updated to state that and Paul Davenport co-founded the club.

Senior Clinton Sibolboro didn’t expect to step in to his role as president when he first joined the boxing club two years ago. Regardless, he gladly took responsibility after the former president graduated.

“Boxing is a tremendous source of cardio and a great workout for people who want something different,” Sibolboro said. “Boxing is super fun and one of the best sources of cardio outside of running, and nobody likes running.”

The boxing club was founded in 2001 by Romeal Watson and Paul Davenport, and has been offering to teach students basic boxing techniques ever since.

Currently, the club meets three times a week on Monday, Tuesday and Friday at 5 p.m. on the second floor of the Phase. Each practice runs about an hour, but members are welcome to stay and work out as long as they’d like. There is a $10 fee to join the club. Once that fee is paid, members are allowed access to the boxing club room whenever the Phase is open.

“Boxing club is the only club that I know of that once you become a member you can use the gym whenever you want,” said Sibolboro. “It’s like paying $10 for a three-month gym membership.”

The club is not allowed to spar regularly since the club is not a certified boxing program at the university. This also means no official bouts take place.

“I teach fundamentals only,” said Sibolboro. “Intermediate to advanced stuff is different for people in different weight classes. It’s up to them to develop their own fighting style […] Unless they’re close to the same weight as I am, I don’t teach anyone advanced techniques.”

Sibolboro recommends that anyone who joins the club wait at least a month before they partake in even light-sparring.

The objective of the club is not to determine who is the toughest guy in the gym, but rather to offer a fun and safe environment for anyone at any level to get a tremendous workout while learning the nuances of the sweet science of boxing.

Sophomore Brandon Wong, a current member, said that the club is welcoming to inexperienced members.

“I’ve had no boxing experience before joining the club and it’s had no effect on the overall experience I’ve had,” Wong said.

Another current member of the club, junior Tanner Walt, has had a positive experience using boxing as his main source of cardio.

“I like the athletic aspect of boxing to go along with breaking a sweat. It’s a really hard workout but it’s a really fun one, too,” Walt said.

Anyone who is interested in joining—or just curious to see what the club is about—can attend a practice.