Local boxer to compete in national youth tournament

Inside the ropes of a ring in South Lorain Wednesday evening, Angel Pizarro Torres bounced back and forth as he continued shadow boxing. With his hands steady, he punches forward. Bounce. Punch. Bounce. Punch. But nothing of consequence is on the line here. Nothing except preparation. Next week, Angel, who is 15, will be in Cleveland, one of hundreds of competitors in the 2026 USA Boxing National Open tournament. "It's a huge opportunity," Angel said between bouts of shadow boxing, adding that he wouldn't take it for granted. The 15-year-old athlete is part of Lorain's Legacy Youth Boxing Club, a place that opens its doors to local youths to learn the sport and train for free. "He loves the sport," said Jaime Colon, founder and head coach of the Legacy Youth Boxing Club. "He comes here every single day ready to train, ready to work hard. And it shows in his fights." To Colon, Angel is one of the best young boxers he's ever coached, he said. On Monday, he will be ringside in Cleveland with him as Angel competes in the national tournament. "When I see him, I see all the potential in the world to compete," Colon said. Colon said that although Angel has built up training and experience, he is not yet ranked. "Our goal is to get him as a ranked fighter," Colon said. "Competing in tournaments like this will help build up his ranking and when you do so it helps build up your status." During Wednesday's training session, Colon said that Angel recently moved to the Lorain community from Puerto Rico, where he won every fight he was in. Since moving to Lorain, Angel is undefeated in four competitions, Colon said. As he leaned against the ring's ropes Wednesday, Angel thought about what it was like to be inside the ring and to win. "It feels great," Angel said. "Not only do you get to show out, you get to prove yourself that you're a winner." Beyond the knockouts and wins, however, is the sense of community Colon said Angel and other youth boxers have found at the club in South Lorain. "For him to find that here, it's like a home away from home," Colon said. "This program really is to keep kids off the streets. I'd like to make a world champ one of these days, but that's not my ultimate goal. My goal is to keep them off the street." To Lorain Council member Angel Arroyo, Jr. — who represents part of South Lorain and watched Angel train Wednesday — it's that sense of community that is important. "This place is for our kids, our youth," Arroyo said. "Right here in South Lorain, we have boxing — and it's not just boxing, you have mentoring. Jaime offers them a place to go off the streets." Contact Garrett Looker at glooker@chroniclet.com.