New stop of social and sports program ‘El deporte va por barrios’, promoted and organized by the Association of Sports Journalists of Malaga (APDM) and which has the collaboration of the ”la Caixa” Foundation. After its successful premiere in Palma-Palmilla, the APDM has made the second talk coincide with International Women’s Day in a meeting entitled ‘Personal defense as a tool against gender violence’. It will take place on Tuesday, March 8, starting at 7:00 p.m., at the Club Boxeo Málaga headquarters, located in the Cortijo Alto neighborhood of the Teatinos-Universidad District.
To delve into the link between women and boxing and the importance of self-defense against gender-based violence, the testimony of the Cádiz-born athlete Catalina ‘Katy’ Díaz, considered one of the great protagonists of Spanish female boxing in recent years, and who holds the honor of being the first Andalusian woman to become European professional boxing champion in history.
Díaz will contribute her personal visions in a situation of social tension and will be accompanied at the event by the APDM journalist Nacho Gutiérrez, specialized in the matter and who participates as a speaker in numerous evenings and national and international championships.
If the date and the protagonists have not been chosen at random, the place where the talk will take place has not been less, the headquarters of the ‘Club Boxeo Málaga’, a non-profit association that supports the most needy people with action projects in marginal neighborhoods and with women victims of gender violence to help them rebuild their lives.
Is about a club that bets on boxing as a social tool for people of any condition, gender and age, and that has Daniel Ríos as his alma mater in his desire to selflessly help people in unfavorable situations or at risk of discrimination through sports. Several women fighters within the Malaga panorama of martial arts will also attend.
Katy Díaz will speak to the students of Club Boxeo Málaga and those attending the talk, which will be divided into rounds, about how practicing boxing helped her gain confidence in her daily life. She will also analyze how the discipline of her studies made her prosper in the so-called ‘noble art’ as she is a methodical and responsible person.
“Boxing empowers you not because you know how to hit physically, but because it makes you see that you can do what you like, you feel strong physically and mentally, and it requires concentration and using yourself to solve and decipher the opponent’s attack. . Like life itself. If you fall or hit yourself, you keep going or you know how to say enough, but it’s me who decides. Boxing is like life itself”, emphasizes Díaz, who will also offer a self-defense exhibition.
‘Pacwoman’ is her name in boxing
The ‘Pacwoman’ –her nickname when entering a boxing ring– is a native of Jerez de la Frontera, grew up in Paterna de Rivera and studied Technical Architecture in Seville. After finishing her studies, she worked for several years as a construction manager until she decided to become a mother and dedicate herself to contact sports. Her life changed for her and she founded, together with her partner and her trainer, José David Versaci, her own school of Boxing and Martial Arts. She practiced Thai Boxing, k1 and amateur boxing, achieving her first milestones, until in 2017 she ended up moving to professional boxing, becoming a two-time European champion and contesting the world championship finals. Her perseverance and professionalism mark her career.
‘Sport goes through neighborhoods’
The Association of Sports Journalists of Malaga launched, in collaboration with the ”la Caixa” Foundation, the sports and social program ‘El deporte va por barrios’, which takes place monthly during the first half of 2022. It is a total of six meetings of a public nature that have been taking place in the headquarters of different modest clubs located in disadvantaged neighborhoods or in sports associations in which their members have limitations of any kind for the performance of physical exercise. The meetings consist of a talk between a professional athlete and a journalist associated with the APDM, and each of them has its own objective and purpose, although they all share as a common denominator inclusion through sport and the promotion of positive values linked to sports practice. They are developed in person, although they are also recorded for dissemination in educational centers in the chosen areas and in other associations for which the talks may have an educational, social or even pedagogical value.