Prokick helps Celebrate Belfast

Politicians have been scrapping with one another for many years in Belfast’s City Hall council chambers, but last weekend children from all over Northern Ireland taught them how to put up a real fight.

Kickboxers as young as six years of age helped launch the Opening Ceremony of the Celebrate Belfast initiative, demonstrating their skills in self-defence and combat.

A boxing ring took centre stage on the City Hall’s lawn, where a number of other sports were displayed, and world champion Gary Hamilton also performed in an open-air bout with current Lord Mayor councillor Wallace Browne.

Lord Mayor Browne certainly knows his way around the political chambers and seemed to be no stranger in a kickboxing ring showing his silky skills and foot work to boot. The 'Browne Bomber' dropped Hamilton with a phantom punch similar to the punch that dropped Sonny Liston in the clash with Muhammad Ali aka Cassius Clay. Thankfully the punch from the 'Browne Bomber' Belfast's first citizen was choreographed, Hamilton has no intentions of visiting the canvas in the clash of the decade when he meets Mohamed Samir in the Ulster Hall this December.

"People have misconceptions about combative sports and it’s great that the Belfast City Council is giving the likes of kickboxing an opportunity to put itself on display, Murray went on to say My members do not join the prokick gym to fight. They come to learn self-defence and get fit. The children come to regular classes and are graded with belts as they improve. We have a three-word code - Truth, Discipline and Respect - that they must practice inside and outside the gym.Often parents tell me that their children have changed for the better since becoming involved in our sport. We have kids aged five and grandparents aged 56 and no-one is pushed toward competitive fighting – that’s a choice they make for themselves."

"For many years we battled against the mind-set that kickboxing was an undesirable sport but today it is the fastest growing sport in Northern Ireland. I know the frustrations facing other sports but with perseverance they can become as successful as kickboxing." Added Billy Murray.

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