By Nigel Maxwell

P.A. teen killed in car accident had “heart of a boxer,” friend says

Jul 27, 2018 | 5:00 PM

Prince Albert’s Will Skopyk is being remembered as a kind person with a true passion for the sport he loved most, boxing.

The 17-year-old was tragically killed in a two-vehicle collision July 24 on White Star Road, northeast of Prince Albert. Dawson Williams was Skopyk’s training partner at the Thomas Settee Boxing Club, and said they had trained together for years, pushing each other hard every night.

“I don’t have anyone else in my life that really pushes me the way Will did as a boxer, so the first thing that comes to mind is I’ll never be able to train the same again,” Williams said.

Williams said his friend had the heart of a boxer and would talk constantly about his favourite sport. 

“He loved it,” Williams said. “He loved every second of it and when he got in the ring he would fight any opponent.”
 

 
Bob Tichkowsky, Head Coach and Manager at the Thomas Settee Boxing Club, was training Skopyk to be an assistant coach. Tichkowsky said Skopyk had his own key and would come train at the gym whenever he wanted.

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“He was what you would call a gentleman, a heart of gold and a kind person. I’ve never seen him mad or angry,” Tichkowsky  said.

Over the course of his amateur career, Skopyk went to many competitions and won many fights. In 2015, he finished top in his weight class at the Saskatchewan Provincial Boxing Championships in Regina. Tichkowsky said Skopyk was getting ready for another provincial competition to be held in the fall at the time of his passing.

“He wanted to turn professional,” he said. “It takes a while to get there, but he was getting there.”

Support for the family has been pouring in over social media. Conrad Burns, another coach at the Thomas Settee Boxing Club, posted a touching tribute on his Facebook page.
 

 
Skopyk graduated from grade eight at ÉcoleVickers and attended Carlton Comprehensive through high school. Saskatchewan Rivers Director of Education Robert Bratvold, who knew Skopyk through his son, has volunteered to collect pictures for the family. 

The young man’s funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Monday morning at St. Joseph’s church in Prince Albert.

nigel.maxwell@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @nigelmaxwell