Micah, a member of East O'ahu Boxing Club, said he is sad and disappointed with the cancellation of boxing in the HPD's Police Activities League last week.

PAL provided monthly bouts, which was part of its appeal, according to Micah.

"I get to experience how it feels to be fighting someone else in the ring," said Micah, who will be a third grader at St. John Vianney School. "I get to fight other boxers and see my friends that box a lot and I get to see them box against people from Maui and Pearl side boxing club and that's when I get to cheer them on."

PAL boxing held its final fights last Saturday, citing the "violence that is associated with the sport," according to HPD Capt. Frank Fujii.

"We've always been concerned about medical reports saying there is a potential for brain injury, and no one is certain about the long-term injuries the sport might inflict," Fujii said.

Fujii pointed to a report by The American Academy of Pediatrics, which opposes the sport of boxing for children, adolescents, and young adults.

It cited that "amateur boxing is a collision sport in which winning is based on the number and force of punches successfully landed on an opponent's head and/or body. This deliberately exposes boxing participants to potentially devastating neurologic and ocular injuries."

But according to Blane Yoshida, coach of the East O'ahu Boxing club, safety shouldn't be a major concern with one-minute rounds, doctors at ringside, required headgear, and 16-ounce gloves that are "almost like pillow gloves."

"I'm upset because their answer doesn't make sense, that it is violent," Yoshida said. "Because we haven't had any injuries, it's a safer sport than PAL basketball or football."

Yoshida said the cancellation would affect more than just youth boxers.

"It goes deeper than boxing," Yoshida said. "The biggest effect is that HPD and the boxers lose. HPD loses its chance on making an impression, a positive image on the kids lives. The kids lose because they could have seen these officers in a good light. It works both ways. They are going to miss the interaction."

In 2004, 145 boxers were registered in PAL boxing in Hawai'i. The organization included 12,651 overall, who participated in basketball, volleyball, baseball, softball, flag football, cooking, canoe paddling, karate, judo, tennis, wrestling, boxing and non-sport activities cooking and explorers, which is tied into Boy Scouts.

More than 300,000 youngsters have benefited from PAL in Hawai'i, according to the department's Web site.

The year-round organization is run at no cost to participants.

PAL boxing started in April 1948, when then-Chief Dan Liu helped to start the program, which consisted of 13 clubs and approximately 260 boxers.

Athletes 7 to 17 were matched according to age, weight and experience.

AGAINST THE TREND

Yoshida said that boxing in the National PAL, of which Honolulu is a member, is "flourishing ... and we're dropping it? It doesn't make sense."

PAL's national events manager Eric Widness, reached by phone in Florida, called boxing "one of the most popular sports" in PAL.

"It's always been the biggest PAL sport. It's really been the staple of our sporting menu," said Widness, who added that about 25,000 participate in boxing nationally.

Fujii said recent incidents indirectly associated with PAL had no bearing on its decision.

"Those incidents aren't the reason why we're pulling out of boxing," Fujii said. "We aren't just evaluating boxing, we're taking a look at other activities."

In April, there was an investigation that a group of Waimanalo men were staging unregulated fights at the Waimanalo Recreation Center, which has been used for organized PAL boxing matches. The owner of the gym later said he would no longer permit any kind of boxing or fighting events there.

In May, police investigated whether a PAL boxing coach and another man pitted a 14-year-old boy against a 32-year-old fighter in a mixed martial arts match at the Dole Cannery ballroom.

Joel Kim, coach of Palolo Boxing Club, said it seems as though the HPD wanted to "distance themselves from the extra curriculars, but there seems to be a better a way than just to cut the program.

"People think boxing is a violent sport, but we don't encourage violence, not only in the gym, but in life, in the family, in school," Kim said.

PAL boxing utilized controlled sparring, with no winners or losers declared at the end of a fight.

"PAL boxing is usually for kids who are just starting out, to see if they want to continue the sport," Yoshida said.

Bruce Kawano, coach of Kawano's/Tiki Ent. (formerly Kaka'ako Boxing Club) and Hawai'i's Junior Olympic chairman, said declaring no winner prevents newer boxers from getting discouraged.

"At the end of the round, they raise both hands," he said.

Kim said, "It's a great way to build competitive nature and friendship, because they knew no one was going to lose or win."

Former PAL boxing participants include pro boxer Brian Viloria and Samson Guillermo, the U.S. Amateur Boxing and the U.S. Challenge champion.

Kawano estimated that 40 percent of participants register with USA Boxing and go on to become future state championships and advance to national championships.

CONTINUING TO TRAIN

Even with the demise of PAL boxing, coaches say their boxers will continue to train, but canceling their monthly bouts hurts their chances to gain experience.

"It hurts them to a point where it's an arena where they can showcase their skills," said Yoshida, a product of PAL boxing.

One of his boxers, Bruno Escalante, 16, of Waimanalo said the experience he gained from PAL boxing helped him when he traveled to the Mainland.

"When I went to the Mainland, I didn't have that much fights, and the guys there fought a lot," Bruno said. "If the PAL stuff wasn't there ... It helped me to fight any kind of styles."

Fourteen boxing clubs located were associated with PAL boxing, in districts such as Wai'anae, Wahiawa, Kalihi, East O'ahu, and Waimanalo.

Micah's mother, Lisa Paraan, called the cancellation "Humbug for the children especially, who can't get the experience as a boxer.

"The kids having fun, they train really hard and they always expect a PAL match every month. It's puts a pall on the kids, that they can't have fun."