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R U Tuff Enuff gets ready to rumble

Jan 15, 2015 | 5:45 AM

There is no event quite like it in Saskatchewan, and this year’s R U Tuff Enuff promises to pack an ever bigger punch.

For the first time ever, Prince Albert is hosting the Golden Gloves Amateur Boxing Championship. Fighters from Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan will compete at the event on Jan. 31.

“This is going to be a really good show. People like the theme of the Golden Gloves. It’s an elite prestigious award for boxers and therefore clubs like to come out and battle for that,” said event co-chair Blake Edwards.

Edwards said they hope to have 20 to 25 bouts this year. There will be both male and female boxers, some as young as 11 or 12 years old.

“This card is going to feature some future Olympians, there’s no doubt about it, there are some elite boxers coming out,” said Edwards.

Longtime fans of the event may be disappointed that the old format has been temporarily KO’ed. The provincial pro MMA and pro boxing commissions are not yet in place, and so the event in its previous format could not be sanctioned.

“The laws changed after our last official Tuff Enuff and we are not going to go against the law,” said Edwards.

He said he has heard that the commissions may be in place for next year and at that time they make look at a pro-am event.

This event is the biggest fundraiser of the year for the Kinsmen Club. Funds raised from past events have gone to community projects like the Kinsmen Water Park.

The doors open at 5 p.m. and the fights will start at 6 p.m. at the Art Hauser Centre.

The show is limited to adults over the age of 19.

Advance tickets are $20 can be purchased at Humpty’s, Propaganda, P.A Soundworks, Boston Pizza, and P.A. Brewing Company. They can also be purchased at the door for $25.

nmaxwell@panow.com

On Twitter: @nigelmaxwell