China's 'only for women' boxing club

2014-12-10 07:12

By (Agencies)

A woman attends a boxing class at Princess Women's Boxing Club in Shanghai December 3, 2014. Women have boxed as long as the sport has existed but for years they were relegated out of national and international competitions in many countries around the world. Female boxers entered the ring in an exhibition match at the 1904 Olympic Games, but it was more than a century later when they were given the green light to make their Olympic debut in London in 2012. In China, although there is a long history of lightweight Chinese fighters, the sport is not very popular among women. However in 2010, Gong Jin, a woman who has trained since she was 12 years old, founded Princess Women's Boxing Club, the first "only for women" boxing club in China. Today more than 100 students between the ages of 18 and 40 train at the small studio in downtown Shanghai. Picture taken on December 3, 2014. [Photo/Agencies]