Glendale News Press
LATimes.com
Aug 19 2004

Fighter is Glendale’s badge of honor

Vanes Martirosyan is the most prominent success story from local
boxing program that is due for a comeback in September.

By Josh Kleinbaum, News-Press

GLENDALE – When Vanes Martirosyan went to Rosemont Middle School, he
had a tendency to be disruptive. An energetic boy and an aspiring
boxer, the Armenian-born kid would lose his focus, leading to
trouble.

Once, his guidance counselor at Rosemont wanted to suspend him.
Instead, Officer Ron Williams, who ran Glendale’s Police Athletic
League youth boxing program, made a deal with the counselor: If Vanes
slacks off, Williams will suspend him from boxing.

“I suspended him two times,” Williams said. “Each time, he came back
with more dedication and determination, and his schooling improved.”

Now, Martirosyan is an 18-year-old welterweight fighter representing
the United States in the Olympics. Today, he will fight Cuba’s
Lorenzo Aragon, a two-time world champion.

Martirosyan should be the poster boy for the Police Department’s
boxing program, which has produced several successful professionals
but no other Olympians. He joined the program at 7, a few months shy
of the minimum age requirement – Williams made an exception for him.
He quickly became one of the program’s best boxers. By 14,
Martirosyan outgrew the program, and Williams recommended another
gym, where he could get sponsorship to travel to the top tournaments.

The poster boy image has one problem. For now, the Police
Department’s boxing program, designed to give discipline and
direction to troubled youth, is in hibernation.

The program lost its venue last year, when Roosevelt Middle School
underwent major renovations. Then, facing budget cuts, the department
reassigned Williams from the Police Activities League to regular
patrol.

“Some of the kids who are looking to have a way to get rid of their
frustrations and get their discipline, this is a good venue for
them,” Mayor Bob Yousefian said. “They come in and punch the bags.
This is a way to take aggravation out on a bag rather than a person.
It’s keeping a lot of at-risk youth out of jails, and it’s generating
less headaches for the police department.”

Sgt. Ron Insalaco said the program will be back in September at
Wilson Middle School, with a civilian and a sworn officer running the
program. Williams will not be involved, Insalaco said.

Martirosyan is the program’s most high-profile success story, but
he’s not the only one. William Abelyan, a featherweight, has a 23-5
record. William Adamyan, a light welterweight, has a 9-1 record.
Ernie Zavala, a light welterweight with an 18-3 record, trains with
Freddie Roach, Mike Tyson’s trainer.

Just as important, Williams said, are the people who joined the
program and never had success in the sport.

“Even if a kid can’t box or had no athletic ability, when he or she
put on that [Police Athletic League] shirt, there was a sense of
pride,” Williams said. “It’s difficult to weigh the program’s
success, but from the comments I get today, it’s clear that it’s a
valuable asset to the department and the city.”

Martirosyan’s success is a little easier to measure. Entering the
Olympic qualifying tournament, he was ranked the No. 14 amateur
welterweight, and he shocked most boxing experts by grabbing the
welterweight Olympic spot. After he dominated Algeria’s Benamar
Meskine, 45-20, in his opening fight Sunday, NBC’s Olympic website
called him “America’s Longest Shot.” If he beats Aragon today, that
long shot may have a golden shot.

“I’m positive he’s going to win a gold medal,” Williams said. “You
heard it here first. Positive.”