The Troxy in east London was the venue last week for a special evening of exhibition boxing and entertainment in support of Fight for Peace.

The event was staged by Fight for Peace partners Keystone and Sportingclass and included a white collar boxing contest between employees from event supporters Fu3e. and Meinhardt, a sparring exhibition featuring two young Fight for Peace boxers, and a Q&A with a star studded panel from the world of boxing including Barry McGuigan, John Conteh and David Haye.

The event comes as part of a fundraising initiative by Fight for Peace to raise £25,000 to fund coaches and support staff to deliver sports, leadership, training and personal development sessions to young people, providing opportunities to learn new skills and develop individual areas of expertise. 

A highlight of the evening came in the form of a series of speeches on Fight for Peace’s work delivered by members of our team, namely Athena Bashar, Fahmida Sultana, Kenny Udenwoke, and our CEO Jenny Oklikah.

An auction of unique experiences and memorabilia donated by supporters and a raffle prize draw also took place, with all proceeds raised helping Fight for Peace deliver its mission of supporting young people to reach their full potential. 

As the centrepiece of the evening, Adam Clayton, from Fu3e., and James Norris, representing Meinhardt, squared off in a three round white collar boxing match. The close fought contest was the culmination of an intense eight week training camp for the two first-time boxers, overseen by Fight for Peace boxing coach Kenny Udenwoke.

“The Boxing Charity Dinner was a night to remember, the atmosphere and to see so many people come out to support the work Fight for Peace does was an absolute pleasure to witness,” said Kenny, reflecting on the evening.

“The White Collar bout was a true test and a real show of heart was displayed from both boxers who took part. A massive well done to the two Fight for Peace boxers who came and gave a sparring demonstration to an audience of up to 250 people. This showed real bravery and confidence at such a young age.”

Adam and James’ journey to the ring was captured by a group of Young Creatives from Fight for Peace in a special documentary directed by Mohammedally Shustari. The film was aired for the first time on the big screens at the event, alongside another Fight for Peace Young Creatives production exploring young people’s perspectives on the themes of success and adversity.  

Fellow Young Creative Lily May Bartley was also in attendance at the Troxy, documenting the event in photographs and for Fight for Peace’s social media channels.

“This event was a brilliant opportunity for partners to raise money to support Fight for Peace,  and also for us to share with our friends, partners and supporters the approach we take to supporting young people.” said Fight for Peace CEO, Jenny Oklikah.

“We are really proud of the members of our team who presented our story during the evening, and the young Fight for Peace boxers Rahim and Zee, who took to the stage to demonstrate the art of boxing to those in attendance,” added Jenny. “And we are enormously grateful to everyone who contributed to a successful evening, in particular Keystone and Sportingclass, the white collar competitors Adam and James and everyone who bought a ticket, bid on the auction or purchased a raffle ticket. The funds and awareness raised will make a huge difference to our work with young people.”

We wish to extend a huge thank you to the organisers of the event, Keystone and Sportingclass, for the wonderful support throughout, and to everyone who attended, donated auction prizes, and contributed to our fundraising effort.

In particular we would like to thank Fu3e., Meinhardt Ltd, Barton Willmore now Stantec, HCH LLP, HLM Architects, Delta Capita, Storm LDN, Sisk, Telford Homes, Bradley Dyer Raw, Mount Anvil, and Byrne Group.

Our fundraising initiative to raise £25,000 to fund coaches and support staff at our Academy in North Woolwich is ongoing for the next three weeks and anyone wishing to add their support can do so via the following Crowdfunder link.