(twangy country music)
- [Narrator] Throughout history,
we've looked at men as the stars of the boxing world.
(rapid thumping)
But these days, some of the sport's most promising boxers
come from a special place in California,
and they're all teenage girls.
I'm Zoe Saldana from Bese,
and I'm teaming up with Great Big Story
to shine a light on American Latinx excellence
around the country.
While boxing has long been a tradition
in the Central Valley of California,
it wasn't until a few years ago
that girls were allowed to compete professionally.
But once the sport was opened up to them,
not only did girls start competing,
they started winning a lot.
In 2017, four girls from the Central Valley
finished first or second at the Junior Olympics.
- Once you're in that ring, it's just and your opponent.
That's it.
- I keep all my aggressiveness inside the ring.
I'm a beast inside the ring.
(grunting and indistinct yelling)
- [Sandra] To be the number one spot,
it takes a lot of hard work and dedication,
but it's all worth it in the end.
- [Narrator] The one leading the pack is Sandra Tovar,
who at only 17 is ranked number one in the nation
in her weight class.
She started boxing when she was only 8 years old
with her father, who remains her coach to this day.
- I train six days a week, three trainings a day.
(energetic funk music)
I wake up in the morning, and I go to school.
I do my homework on the way to boxing,
and I do it on the way back home.
My biggest goal right now is to make it to Olympics
and get a gold medal.
For me to make that goal possible,
every single tournament that is coming up,
I have to win it and gather up all my points
for my weight class
and just keep pushing hard.
- Keep that jab pumping.
Relax.
I've been coaching since 1992,
and I've trained a lot of champions
and Sandra stands out.
I remember when the sport of boxing was just boys,
but I believe this new generation of girls
is gonna change it.
- [Narrator] Competing professionally is expensive,
and it's become a major obstacle
for many boxers in the Central Valley.
But thanks to the community banding together
to raise funds to send these girls
to compete at the national level,
the Central Valley has contributed
to the changing face of boxing.
- I believe it's because of the way they're raised.
They don't have much,
and they're willing to do whatever it takes to move up.
It makes them hungrier.
Makes them stronger-willed
to reach what they wanna get out of life.
Don't worry about those posts.
They don't mean nothing.
I want you to really hurt her.
- I feel like the spots are open tremendously right now
in the sport of female boxing,
and I feel like it's gonna end up getting equal
to men's boxing.
(tranquil music)