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(JUN 17) I recently had the chance to sit down with 26 year old Mississauga
native Olga “The Hurricane” Heron after the Ali -Toughill bout to
talk about her upcoming bout against Amy Johnson (4-0-1, 1KO).
The event is being held on June 18, 2005 live on pay per view in Edmonton,
Alberta, Canada at 7:30 Central time, 9:30 Eastern time. Canadians will have
a chance to see the event by replay on TSN.
Don’t let Olga Heron's 3-5 1KO record fool you; she is much better than her
record indicates. She has fought very tough opponents in the past such as
Lisa
Brown, a
World Champion, and top contender
Jelena
Mrdjenovich
twice in the past. Heron has not taken the easy road to pad her record
like some women boxers have done, or fight solely in her hometown with the
same promoter to easily secure a judges decision. Heron is willing to travel
anywhere and box anyone in her weight class.
She plans to display good, quality boxing skills from a women’s perspective
and use her defensive skills to neutralize Johnson’s attack and land some
solid counter punches of her own. Olga looks to be in great shape and says
she will have no problem if the match goes the scheduled six rounds. Olga
knows that Johnson is tough, having seen her get knocked down and get back
up in her match against
Tonya Harding.
The Harding bout was a
contest in which many felt that Johnson fought a dirty and that it
was a controversial match. More
However, Olga is ready, having sparred with fellow professional boxer
and Mississauga native Leona Richardson. Richardson who usually
fights at 146 pounds has helped prepare Olga for any negative situations
that might arise.
Olga stated, "The sparring sessions have been wars!" In addition, Olga
has learned from experience having boxed Jelena Mrdjenovich twice before.
Olga felt those matches were a little dirty as well and she was not prepared
physically to be wrestling as much as they were.
There have been significant changes made since Olga’s last match, a
six-round unanimous decision loss to
Leona "DownTown" Brown
. She took two months off to do a self reflection on whether or not she
wanted to continue as a pro because she was out of shape at the time of the
match especially since she was only given two weeks notice for the fight.
Olga felt it was very unprofessional and unhealthy for her because she had
to lose twelve pounds in less than two weeks. After the two months,
Olga and her husband, Andrew, hit the gym five times a week to work on
the little things and the bad habits that she picked up over the years.
Since then Olga’s passion for the sport has been rebuilt and has been
training diligently with Andrew.
Heron was a ballet dancer who got into boxing to stay in shape, improve her
flexibility, and her conditioning. She has a deep religious devotion and
prayed for guidance on what to do with her life. Her religious devotion is a
phenomenal thing to witness and she lives her life in a very positive
manner. She has been very involved in the boxing profession and with Andrew
own Huf Executive Fitness in Mississauga. Olga enjoyed the sparring sessions
and did not mind being hit; she found it a lot of fun and was eager to find
out everything she could about women’s boxing. She feels that boxing is an
ongoing process because there has never been a match where you are not hit
thus there is always something to work on and practice.
Olga’s short term goal for this year is to try to have a match every month.
She wants to stay as active as possible. She stands 5’3", and is willing to
box anywhere between 122 and 130 pounds so there should be plenty of
opportunities out there for her. Heron’s long term goal is to win a title,
hopefully a Canadian title by the end of this year. Olga recently finished
her Italian citizenship and wants to pursue matches in Europe and hopes to
win a European and a World title someday.
Olga told me that has no concerns about the state of women’s boxing and
likes that promoters have now started to have all female cards. She feels
that the women’s skill levels are continually rising. Heron would like to
see promoters put on more matches in the Toronto area because there are so
many women boxers in the area that cannot find any bouts.
Olga feels that there are no boxers out there who are negative for the
sport. She gave the example of Laila Ali. Many feel that Ali uses her
father’s name however Olga has met her and knows how hard Ali trains and how
serious she takes the sport, and how far along her training and technique
has come along.
Olga said, "Every match that I have been in is a learning experience--both
in boxing and spiritually and I cannot wait for Saturday night." |
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