Boxing club promotes health, sportsmanship

As training begins for the coming Buffalo Golden Gloves tournament, Rick Diaz, owner of the Westside Boxing Club, 164 W. Ferry St., balances his amateur fighters’ career aspirations with his new recruits' excitement to step in the ring. Whether it’s teaching sportsmanship, promoting a healthy lifestyle or coaching self-defense tactics, Diaz and his volunteers model their gym around a positive learning environment. Battling the stereotypes that come with the violent nature of boxing, Diaz pulls from his past fighting and military experience to instill in each student life lessons to help them both in and out of the ring. By Taylor Gesel and Nate Smith