SINGAPORE – The sport of boxing is known as “the sweet science,” but to 19-year-old Calros Ong, it all started as just a bit of fun.
“My friends and I [started out] by sparring with each other,” he said. “As I became more interested in improving my skills and technique, I realized that joining a gym would provide the structured training I needed to progress.”
Today, Ong stands tall as a champion. In his first ever overseas tournament, the Sarawak Open Boxing Championship in 2022 in Kuching, he won gold in the youth category (16 to 18 years). He also picked up the Best Youth Boxer Award.
Ong kept up his training and made his professional boxing debut on October 31, 2024 in Bangkok, picking up a Technical Knockout (TKO) victory in the fourth round. At his age, he is currently the youngest professional boxer in the country.
Ong’s journey began in 2021, when he and his friends attended a trial class at a Singapore gym. However, only Ong signed up for a full membership. He had fallen in love with the sport.
“[I attended] two classes a day where I focused on learning the fundamentals and participating in sparring events. I then transitioned to amateur fights to further develop my skills,” Ong shared.
After some time, he thought that in order to progress, he needed to find like-minded partners who shared his “drive and ambition”. This led him to switch gyms and join Foxglove Fight Gym, where he currently trains.
But what did his parents think of his newfound passion?
“When I first mentioned to my parents that I wanted to pursue boxing, my father was alright with it. However, my mother was initially concerned, as she believed boxing was a dangerous sport,” Ong said.
But he managed to placate his mother, enough for him to continue training. “To this day, she still worries every time I have a fight, but I make sure to keep her updated on my training and the safety measures in place to ease her concerns.”
Ong had to make sacrifices to pursue his interest in boxing, as his school did not offer a club. He had a busy schedule where he would attend classes during the day, and then go for training sessions in the evenings.
However, he had a good mentor at Foxglove Fight Gym, Coach Matthew Charles Robin Pellino. Pellino has trained MMA fighters and boxers in Las Vegas, and offered to personally train Ong for free.
Offering his time and expertise, Pellino helped Ong to work on his techniques beyond what a regular coach could do, he said, and this has “significantly accelerated” his growth as a boxer.
In the days leading up to his first professional bout, Ong was nervous about the big occasion.
He had one overseas tournament under his belt, but that was as a youth boxer. This would be a next level contest.
Ong trained intensely, sometimes doing two or three sessions a day, over the course of three months.
“My goal was to eliminate any doubts or excuses, ensuring I was fully prepared physically and mentally for the fight,” he said.
During the “Rise of Legends” event in Bangkok, Ong faced off against Wisitsak Saiwaew, a 30-year-old boxer with experience in over 30 professional bouts.
However, Ong managed to pull out a victory by TKO in the fourth round. How did he do it?
“[By] following the game plan my coach and I had developed during fight camp. By trusting his guidance and sticking to the strategy we had been working on for months,” Ong said.
His victory marks not only a personal milestone for the young pugilist, but also highlights the up-and-coming talent in Singapore’s boxing scene.
But if we are to see more of such talent develop, Ong wouldn’t mind receiving a little extra support and recognition from the Singaporean government.
“Being a young fighter comes with its own set of challenges, so such backing would provide me with the resources and opportunities necessary to continue growing,” he said.
The sky’s the limit for Ong, as he continues to chase his dreams.
“My goal is to gain as much experience as possible and gradually challenge myself against some of the best fighters in the world. By consistently improving and pushing myself, I aim to work my way up to the elite level and ultimately become one of the best in the sport.” – Rappler.com
Sulaiman Daud is a 2024 #FactsMatter fellow of Rappler. He is a writer and editor at Mothership, Singapore’s youth-focused digital news platform.
