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Sports

Belinda Diaz: Queen of the Ring

Sachem East boxer shooting for 2012 Olympic bid.

In Feb. 2009, Sachem East’s Belinda Diaz had her first boxing lesson. At the time the 13-year old eighth grader didn’t know the lesson would change her life forever.

Diaz now aspires to be the first woman from the United States to compete in women’s boxing in the upcoming 2012 Olympic Games in London.

Growing up she was a soccer star on the Sachem North side of the district. As a freshman she tried out for North’s girls varsity soccer team and figured it would bolster her conditioning.

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She went to Hammertime Boxing Gym in Bohemia to train and stay in shape for soccer season, but when soccer arrived she faced an untimely setback in the form of a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

Out for the season, she continued to rehab and train, eventually taking a stern interest to boxing. Today, she trains at Body Shots in Port Jefferson.

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Diaz, 16, is just shy of competing in the Golden Gloves, which accepts athletes who are 17. Currently Diaz is 5-0 in her career and she recently won the women’s Metro Championship.

“I haven’t lost yet and I don’t plan on it,” she said. “I just want to continue winning.”

She knows making it to the Olympics isn’t an easy feat.

“It takes determination, heart, and the ability to overcome any obstacles standing in your way,” said Diaz.

She has two options for the Games, qualifying for the U.S. or fighting for El Salvador, her main ethnic background. She’ll also need to be a highly ranked boxer in Central America if that were the case. Still, if she ends up in the ring overseas, it will be the ultimate prize.

 “That would be the ultimate accomplishment in my life, my dream come true,” she said.

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