Oldham boxing club boasts champions, still close to community

Team Greaves Boxing Club, on Bourne Street, Chadderton, welcomes people of all ages to train and has recently produced two title winners in professional Michael Gomez Jr and amateur Luke Quinlan.

Marvin Greaves, who runs the club, was a former professional boxer himself who has been training people of all ages and levels for over 20 years and says he mainly runs the club as a way to "get kids off the streets".

Gomez Jr, 26, is the son of legendary Manchester-based boxer Michael Gomez and is following in his father's footsteps as he won the Central Area Super Featherweight Title on Friday, November 5 with victory at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium over Sufyaan Ahmed.

Gomez Jr beat Ahmed in the fourth round to win his first professional belt, the same belt that was his father's first belt.

Greaves, who has been training Gomez Jr for around two years, said: "When I first met him, his head was not in the right place, but we built a bond and got all the negativity out of his head."

Gomez Jr has now moved to 15-1 in his career, including five knockouts, and is planning to vacate his belt in order to try and win a British belt next year.

The boxing club is a big part of the community for many.

Meanwhile, Quinlan, 16, became England Boxing National Junior Champion for 46kg over the Halloween weekend. Greaves explained the next goal is to get Quinlan on the youth squad for England or Team GB.

Although the club is enjoying great success, Greaves doesn't set out just to make champions, but runs the club to offer kids a better path.

He says the club is a way of helping to "sort out people with mental health problems" as he looks to "give back to the community as much as possible".

People of all ages are welcome at the club, with child-parent sessions, group sessions and individual training all on offer. The club sees anyone from a young child putting on gloves for the first time all the way to professionals and is producing top fighters.