Last spring, Kim Bosse '02 heard a challenge in the voice of her male classmate. A boxer who trained at a local gym, he doubted that females were capable of the strength and endurance the sport required. Bosse proved him wrong. Each weekday since, she has followed an intense schedule of training — two hours of boxing, a 2–4 mile run, and strength training exercises. "When I'm not in class," said Bosse, "I'm working out."

Lewiston is well known for its boxing history. Muhammad Ali, using the infamous "phantom punch," knocked out Sonny Liston in the 1965 fight at the Central Maine Youth Center. As a teenager, Bosse's dad sneaked into that fight. The city is also home to Joey Gamache, two-time world boxing champion. Growing up in neighboring Auburn, Bosse experienced firsthand the excitement generated by the local boxing legend. She still remembers watching her brother's old tapes of Gamache's televised fights.

When she first walked into Gamache Boxing Club, Bosse was intimidated by the presence of local hero Joey, whose father, Joe Sr., owns the gym. Six months later, she is as comfortable throwing jabs and ducking hooks as any male boxer. While Bosse, a psychology major, relishes the physical demands of boxing, she loves the mental challenges as well. "Good boxers are smart boxers," she explained. "It's all about detecting your opponentís patterns and countering them." Just one obstacle remains: finding an opponent in a sport where females are as unusual as a first-round knockout punch. — By Jennifer Giblin '01