Winning Internationally - Poland

Kielce Poland VII Leszek Drogosz Memorial Tournament 

On October 20th, eleven days from Halloween which is one of my favorite seasons, the weather was brisk as a breeze from the open landing fields blew threw terminal one departures of the airport. The night of departure from YYZ (Pearson International Airport), Coach Dewith, my mother J and I all hopped in the van, as we have done many times, and headed for the airport. Coach and I were flying off to Warsaw, Poland to win Gold at the Leszek Drogosz Memorial tournament in Kielce City.

Day One - Weigh-ins

I was up early to go out running to ensure that the last kilogram of excess weight was gone before stepping foot on the scale. Mentally and for your self-confidence, the best in you must show up today for weigh-ins, for the fight, and for that opponent within you. Today, right now, I am prepared and ready to Win. 69 Kg! The official weight keeper announced. “Wow!” said Dragoliub Dragovic, a head official and huge boxing fan. “You are a big Welterweight and I wish you the best.” He continued to say as I proceeded toward the breakfast lounge of the hotel. Later that day I got some good news that I wasn’t fighting on the first day of the tournament. This gave me time for some much-needed rest after travelling the day before. This is what we call luck in boxing. You must train to be ready for success and with some luck, all goes as planned.

Day Two - Weigh-ins

This fight started the night before, going down a local gym at the mall and attempting to get a late-night gym pass without personal I.D. In Poland, this harder than using your sweet words, it’s the policy. That was one thing I noticed and enjoyed about Poland. People weren’t in a hurry and worked together as a society by simply following street laws and regulations. 

On the morning of my first competition, I thought back to watching Russia fight Italy from the night before and saying to myself I want to fight one of these two. The better the competition, the better my boxing will be and I’ll continue to improve. Competition morning I felt great but had to hit the gym again. The scale official said, 69 kg. I feel amazing weighting in at 69.0 kg. You know your ready to do damage when your body's on point with no points to give. “We’re ready,” said coach as we headed to the venue later that day. 

Quarterfinals - Poland VS Jamaica

We arrived in town on October 21st -25th, from the 23rd all fights, were held at this beautifully built sports complex called, Hala Legionów in Kielce, Poland. Due to being in Poland and fighting Poland, my fight was scheduled more towards the end of the fight card on day two of the competition. Daniel Piotrowski of Poland versus Joshua Frazer fighting out of Kingston, Jamaica was announced over the loudspeaker.

Round one: I established my jab and distance early in the round. Poland and most euro fighters like close-range fighting, so I attempted to make him miss and counter punch, as well as touching him with my jab. Round Two: Daniel Piotrowski was not matched for my speed and power as I started to sit down and throw big shots to try to end the show early. Landing a big counter, followed up by some good combos, Piotrowski fought awkwardly and continually moved forward behind his punches. He was televising many of his shots by loading up before throwing power shots. BOOM!! I landed a huge over-hand as he threw another digging body shot without committing to landing. He finally took a few steps back towards the end of the round as the ten-second warning was knocking. I eased off as we slightly clashed heads or an elbow to my head during one of the last interactions of the round. Third & Final Round: Motivation as well as mental focus, being in the moment and living in the moment is very important for boxers. You need to remain focused for nine minutes of a twelve-minute match. Even more so at this point because I thought the elbow/head had cut me as I was going for a stoppage at the beginning of round one. Piotrowski dug deep and was still moving and throwing blow from awkward angles slipping pass my guard, but it wasn’t enough and I finished the fight with a unanimous decision win over Poland.

Semi-Finals - Scotland vs Jamaica

Sam Hickey of Scotland was a tall lanky fighter just like myself. At the end of round one, quickly realizing that this guy is not going anywhere, I decided to keep him at the end of my punches by using my jab and longer punches. Hickey also tried to establish his long jab as well but was no match for my speed and power and I won a unanimous decision. I am now one fight away from winning my first international gold medal.

Finals – Russia vs Jamaica

This is my final morning of weigh-ins. I don’t have to do a workout because I wake up on weight and when I step onto the scale and it shows again I am 69 kg. I feel ready and I’m excited to compete in the finals. My opponent is Marat Gashimov from Russia and by the last day of the tournament we have our routine down. From when to eat, to how much rest I need and when I should start warming up is all recorded for future competitions. My fight against Gashimov was my easiest fight of the tournament. He was a slick boxer but kept his hands too low, so as the taller boxer, I was able to make contact by punching over his guard. After three rounds of competitive boxing, I was announced the winner by unanimous decision.

Visualization has been key and vital for this competition and will continue be a priority for the future. Seeing and believing in the process through this journey has been even more rewarding. Winning and losing alongside your biggest mentors and the deepest believers in your world; parents and true teammates want me to do well and succeed. This makes for some self-inflicted pressure, but the ones that love you and you love the most in this world always have the right words to say. Many people have a hand in my training and preparation, and I am grateful for my team Coach Dewith, Coach Ira, Whip, Revibe, Lift Physio, Jake, Jacob, Tristan, and many more. I am Joshua Frazer focused on winning the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. We are working hard and striving for great things.

Check out the article on my website under “News” from Gleaners a nationwide newspaper in Jamaica. Written by Leroy Brown, a retired and highly respected boxing official in AIBA Boxing also Jamaican boxing history. He wrote a beautifully done recap of the tournament. 

Thank you for your time - I hope you enjoy.

Joshua Frazer

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