craig stephen
01-18-2009, 05:42 AM
I’ve read so much lately about Michael Gomez, especially some great pieces by Jeff Thomas that I thought that I would throw in my Gomez experience.
I MC a lot of charity dinner shows and on Friday night I was at Airth Castle in Scotland doing a show in aid of Strathcarron Hospice.
I didn’t know before I arrived but the guest of honour was to be Michael Gomez. Michael spends a good deal of time in Glasgow and one of his close friends has close emotional ties with the hospice. He had invited Gomez to attend.
It was the usual affair, amateur boxing, eight good, well matched bouts, four skills exhibitions for the youngsters and an auction to boost funds for the Strathcarron Hospice.
Gomez arrived about 7.30; just before the diners sat down to eat and the first thing that impressed me was the fact that he and Kevin Maree had travelled all the way up from Manchester on a busy, Friday evening.
After dinner and just before the boxing commenced, I introduced Michael to rapturous applause from a packed hall. During the evening, he presented the boxers with their trophies in the ring and at the auction, which is noticeably tougher with the credit crunch than it was a year ago, he came in with a pair of gloves, to be signed with photo & personal message, the hospice was £1000 better off for that.
It was a long evening, as these things usually are, and between the 12 bouts and the auction we didn’t finish until after midnight. Gomez was at his table throughout the whole evening with a constant stream people, from young boxers to middle aged businessmen, approaching him for a chat, an autograph or a photo. He took it all in his stride, spoke with everyone and was among the last to leave at the end, the mark of a true champion.
One thing that really tickled Gomez was that our ringside doctor, Dr Brian Tansey, had been the doctor who had seen Michael before the Alex Arthur fight. They renewed their acquaintance and reminisced about the doctors first words at the weigh in. Dr Tansey had looked at the sheet, seen the name Gomez, and greeted Michael with “Buenos días”, Gomez replied, “you what?”
I had met him a few of times before, even introduced him in the ring for his last two fights, but this was the first time that I had really spoken to him properly and been around him for a significant time. I can see now why Jeff Thomas is so enthusiastic about him in his posts. I hope that he does well, whichever direction his career now takes him, he deserves it.
I MC a lot of charity dinner shows and on Friday night I was at Airth Castle in Scotland doing a show in aid of Strathcarron Hospice.
I didn’t know before I arrived but the guest of honour was to be Michael Gomez. Michael spends a good deal of time in Glasgow and one of his close friends has close emotional ties with the hospice. He had invited Gomez to attend.
It was the usual affair, amateur boxing, eight good, well matched bouts, four skills exhibitions for the youngsters and an auction to boost funds for the Strathcarron Hospice.
Gomez arrived about 7.30; just before the diners sat down to eat and the first thing that impressed me was the fact that he and Kevin Maree had travelled all the way up from Manchester on a busy, Friday evening.
After dinner and just before the boxing commenced, I introduced Michael to rapturous applause from a packed hall. During the evening, he presented the boxers with their trophies in the ring and at the auction, which is noticeably tougher with the credit crunch than it was a year ago, he came in with a pair of gloves, to be signed with photo & personal message, the hospice was £1000 better off for that.
It was a long evening, as these things usually are, and between the 12 bouts and the auction we didn’t finish until after midnight. Gomez was at his table throughout the whole evening with a constant stream people, from young boxers to middle aged businessmen, approaching him for a chat, an autograph or a photo. He took it all in his stride, spoke with everyone and was among the last to leave at the end, the mark of a true champion.
One thing that really tickled Gomez was that our ringside doctor, Dr Brian Tansey, had been the doctor who had seen Michael before the Alex Arthur fight. They renewed their acquaintance and reminisced about the doctors first words at the weigh in. Dr Tansey had looked at the sheet, seen the name Gomez, and greeted Michael with “Buenos días”, Gomez replied, “you what?”
I had met him a few of times before, even introduced him in the ring for his last two fights, but this was the first time that I had really spoken to him properly and been around him for a significant time. I can see now why Jeff Thomas is so enthusiastic about him in his posts. I hope that he does well, whichever direction his career now takes him, he deserves it.