World boxing champion Ria Ramnarine says rumours that she and the late Jizelle Salandy sparred outside the ring are false and it's time that such gossip be put to rest.
"A lot of people tend to think that Jizelle and I were enemies; that we fought against each other because we were supposedly on opposite teams. Sometimes different perspectives kept us apart but Jizelle and I actually had a good relationship, especially early in our career," said Ramnarine.
Speaking at last week's Secondary School sport symposium titled No Pain, No Gain hosted by The Sport Desk, Ramnarine told hundreds of students assembled at the Cascadia Hotel and Conference Centre in St Ann's, Port-of-Spain, to pay no attention to such utterances.
Many in the audience were of the belief that Ramnarine was discovered after Salandy's death and wanted to know if she (Ramnarine) felt pressured to be the new lead women's boxer, when the fraternity was thrown into mourning back in January 2009.
"People thought a lot of times, and it was no fault of theirs, that Jizelle Salandy was the only female boxer that we had. It's simply because she got a lot of publicity. We won't get into the details but people were informed a lot more about Jizelle Salandy, compared to Ria Ramnarine. Ria Ramnarine had always been training, Ria Ramnarine is the first female (in T&T) to win a world title and Ria Ramnarine never lost sight of her vision to be the best that she can be," she said.
Ramnarine added, "Jizelle and I both made our debut on the same night, December 3, 1999. And we actually grew in the sport together. One grew faster than the other, because if you have two plants and you're giving one water (and) fertiliser, obviously that plant would grow faster.
"I cannot say that Jizelle's passing made me more motivated. I will be lying. I've never lacked the motivation and that drive to succeed. It was unfortunate that she passed because I felt that she had so much to give to T&T and the rest of the world. It was a loss that T&T, in boxing, never recovered.
"Jizelle had a lot of experiences as a youngster that a lot of people don't know about and at times, although she was that brave confident person you see on the outside, she had a lot going on inside. More of the advice I had for Jizelle at times was more on a personal basis; how to let go things and how to move on."
Boxing is every bit much a woman's sport as much as it is a man's said Ramnarine. She went on to explain that people criticised her involvement in the sport because they did not understand the dynamics.
People, she said, were of the view that boxers are big in size and wanted to know what place she had in the ring. What they did not know was that boxers and other contact sport athletes fight according to their weight.
"There is a clear need for more education about boxing. We compete according to weight. I compete at (weights of) 105-108. There isn't much room for my opponents to be more than six pounds heavier than I am. My biggest accomplishment is still being involved in boxing.
"I could easily say it was my first world title, it was the time that I won four title on one night or I can say it was my very first victory which I still relish, but to me, my biggest accomplishment is being able to overcome all the obstacle that I've been faced with and to be able to continue my sport," said Ramnarine.
Up to three years ago, there was a mere handful of female boxers in T&T, said the champ, but a restructuring of the sport has seen amateur boxers find a place. We don't have much female professional boxers, she said, but the amateurs were being given a lot of opportunities.
"2012 was the first time female boxing was brought into the Olympics. With female boxing being allowed into the Olympics�with an Olympic medal being every athletes dream�a lot more attention is being to the female boxers.
"Right now there is a female team in camp and there is a regional team from the Dominican Republic and Barbados coming (to T&T); and in May, in Venezuela, there is going to be a continental championship. When I retire, I don't think the girls will be turning 'pro' as yet, because 2016 is just around the corner. If I was those girls, I would definitely want a shot at qualifying for the Olympics," she said.