86-year-old boxing icon to be honored after nearly six decades of coaching
By Isaiah Sharp
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NAMPA, Idaho (KIVI) — Local boxing Icon Rene ‘El Gato’ Medina is being honored at a fight night on October 17th in Nampa for his decades of dedication to the sport.
At 86-years-old, he can still be found watching every punch inside a small Nampa boxing gym.
It’s a familiar setting for a man who has spent more than half a century teaching the sport and has coached multiple generations of fighters.
“He’s trained kids, they grow up. Those kids bring in their kids and those kids have also brought in their kids,” Carmen Medina said. “So, like, he’s trained a father, a son and a grandfather.”
Medina began coaching boxers in 1968, but his connection to the sport started years when he was a teen.
“When he was about 17 years old, it became a passion for him,” Carmen said.
When asked why he first stepped into the ring, Medina’s answer was simple: “Because he was very skinny when he was a boy.”
Tired of being bullied and looking for an avenue away from drugs and alcohol, Medina picked up a pair of gloves and began fighting.
Known in the ring as “El Gato,” Medina eventually reached a point in his boxing career where he fought on an undercard for Joe Frazier. But his lasting impact would come outside the ropes, where he began training the next generation.
“He’ll train you today and tomorrow you might become a champion,” said Louie Neagle, coach at Tomorrow’s Champions. “That was his philosophy. You train hard and tomorrow you might be a champion, and I’ve always liked that about him.”
That philosophy is reflected in the name of the gym where Medina continues to coach, Tomorrow’s Champions.
Over the years, hundreds of men and women have trained under Medina, while dozens of coaches have followed in his footsteps.
On Oct. 17, Medina’s decades-long career will be honored during a fight night in Nampa. The fight will feature a heavyweight bout between Ruben Manrajos Jr. of Idaho vs. Ryan Bailey of Washington
And after 58 years of coaching, “El Gato” still has no plans to leave the corner.
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