Former middleweight champion of the world Hassan N’Dam wanted to repay the French hospital that cared for his father-in-law through his battle with COVID-19.
Perhaps with Champagne? Or chocolates?
“These are things that won’t last. I wanted to leave something quite memorable,” N’Dam said.
Photo: AP
It occurred to him that he held the answer in his own hands — or rather, in his fists.
He would give the medical workers at Villeneuve-Saint-Georges hospital boxing lessons, to help them relieve the tension of long shifts during the coronavirus pandemic — “letting off steam, getting rid of all one’s emotions.”
“They have seen so many [difficult] things that they came here looking for something,” said N’Dam, who wore a blue mask as he spoke at the hospital. “Sometimes they came to laugh, to let off steam. Others came to discover something, others to learn, improve.”
The 36-year-old, who represented Cameroon at the 2016 Olympic Games, has won 37 of 41 professional fights — 21 by knockout.
His 30-minute training sessions have been immensely popular with the staff.
As a nurse in the intensive care unit (ICU), 27-year-old Marina de Carli, has been on the front line of the pandemic since it hit France.
“In the ICU we see things that are not easy,” she said. “So it feels good to let the pressure drop a bit.”
Wearing camouflage-pattern shorts and a mask, she threw punches into the burly boxer’s hands during her fifth and final class.
“Advance, advance, advance, go back, go back, go back,” N’Dam calmly advised her.
Operating theater nurses Kenza Benour and Nassima Guermat warmed up for their training by skipping rope — awkwardly, because their shoes were covered with blue plastic protective shields.
Guermat’s strong left-right hook combinations pounded N’Dam’s hand pads, as his wife looked on.
The hospital boxing bouts also gave N’Dam valuable time to see his father-in-law, Jean-Claude Valero, as he recovered from COVID-19.
Valero on Wednesday was well enough to sit and watch N’Dam in action.
Philippe Wodecke, 55, who had a hand in treating Valero, was keen to learn from the former world champion.
Dressed in crimson red tracksuit pants and wearing a T-shirt from the 2012 London Games, the orthopedic surgeon’s pugilism belied his age.
Light on his toes, the stocky surgeon unleashed a quick four-punch combination that seemed to surprise, perhaps even impress, N’Dam.
Wodecke’s boxing career is unlikely to take off, but the workouts have been an invaluable help for him and his weary colleagues.
“A moment of escape, a moment of relaxation amid the torment,” Wodecke said. “He’s done us a lot of good.”
Taiwanese women’s doubles star Hsieh Su-wei and Australian teenager Maya Joint on Tuesday eased into the Eastbourne Open quarter-finals in England as Hsieh prepares for the Wimbledon Championships next week. Four-time Wimbledon women’s doubles champion Hsieh and 19-year-old Joint fired two aces and converted five of eight break points to defeat Japan’s Shuko Aoyama and Poland’s Katarzyna Piter 6-3, 6-3 in 58 minutes on the grass court. Hsieh and Joint are today to face fourth seeds Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic and Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko, who advanced on Monday with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Quinn Gleason of the US and
BEAT THE HEAT: A brutal heat wave in the US has made cooling breaks standard. Dortmund’s coach said the weather could shape the destiny of the tournament Chelsea on Tuesday beat Esperance of Tunisia 3-0 to set up a FIFA Club World Cup last-16 tie against SL Benfica, who earlier defeated Bayern Munich 1-0, as furnace-link heat and the threat of thunder and lightning wreak havoc at the tournament. Elsewhere, minnows Auckland City claimed a memorable draw against Boca Juniors, while Los Angeles bowed out of the tournament with a stalemate against Flamengo. In Charlotte, Andreas Schjelderup scored the only goal for Benfica in their Group C clash with Bayern in front of 33,287 fans, finishing first-time from a cutback by his fellow Norwegian Fredrik Aursnes in the 13th
REUNION: Former Barcelona players Luis Suarez, Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba and Miami coach Javier Mascherano are to face their former coach Luis Enrique Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi faces a tantalizing reunion with former club Paris Saint-Germain in the FIFA Club World Cup last 16 after both sides on Monday progressed to the knockout phase. Miami drew 2-2 with Palmeiras to go through second in Group A, after the Brazilian side fought back from two goals down to seal top spot. They now face an all-Brazil clash against Botafogo, who lost 1-0 to Atletico Madrid, but progressed from Group B in second at the expense of the Spaniards. Champions of Europe PSG won the group with a 2-0 victory over Seattle Sounders, paving the
The New Taipei Kings claimed the inaugural Taiwan Professional Basketball League (TPBL) championship on Sunday, defeating the Kaohsiung FamilyMart Aquas 108-89 in the final. Playing at home, the Kings pulled ahead with Jeremy Lin’s (林書豪) clutch three-pointers, securing their victory over the Aquas in the TPBL final. The Kings came out strong in the first quarter, dominating to build a 35-18 lead. By halftime, they had stretched their advantage to 61-38. In the third quarter, the Aquas narrowed the deficit to 12 points, but Lin stepped up, sinking several tough three- pointers to extend the lead. In the final quarter, the Kings pushed the
RSS