SPIRIT OF HAVANA
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It’s a mild day in Havana, but Emilio
Correa Bayeux Jr is slicked with sweat.
It beads on his face and chest, running in
rivulets down his spine. After a 7am start,
he’s just completed his morning session
of training – the first of two for the day –
and he catches his breath, leaning against
a chipped blue wall in the Gimnasio
Rafael Trejo.
This boxing gym in the heart of Old
Havana is no stuffy indoor affair; it’s an
open-air space where crowds gather to
watch bloody bouts on Friday nights,
lining the bare wooden benches that rise
in grandstands either side of a well-worn
boxing ring. There’s no fight today, but
pairs of young boxers take turns to spar and
pound at bags, practising their feints and
jabs with small, noisy huffs of breath.
The gym first opened in the 1930s, and
has barely changed since. Every surface is
mottled with damp or shows evidence of a
dozen repaintings, and the ropes around the
ring are patched and frayed. But despite its
humble appearance, this gym is a beloved
Havana icon and a pilgrimage site for
boxing enthusiasts from across the world.
Cubans are fervently passionate about the
sport – and successful, with a world-
beating haul of 38 Olympic gold boxing
medals. Many of Havana’s champions have
trained in this ring, and Emilio is one ofthem. The 31-year-old is an Olympic silver
medallist, following in the footsteps of his
father, who won welterweight Olympic
gold in 1972.
‘Boxing is a way of life in Cuba, it’s so
special for us,’ Emilio says. He is an
imposing figure – almost six feet of solid
muscle capable of lightning ferocity within
the ring – but he believes it’s his bone-deep
defiance that has made him a champion.
‘Cuban people are adapted to struggle,’ he
says. ‘From the time we’re very small, we
know that we have to fight for our future.
We live with passion and we fight for
principles, fight for pride – and that’s true
not just in boxing, but for every Cuban.’
The gymnasium is a fitting stage for
Emilio’s pugnacious words – it was named
after a Cuban revolutionary martyr, Rafael
Trejo, who was shot in a student protest in- As Emilio packs away his gloves and
prepares to leave, a group of young men
wanders in, each perhaps 14 or 15 years
old. They nod with respect to the veteran
Olympian, then begin their squats and
stretches, all lithe and light-footed –
even with the weight of their country’s
reputation for boxing glory resting
squarely on their shoulders.
O The Gimnasio de Boxeo Rafael Trejo is located
at Calle Cuba 815. Pre-bookings are not possible;
instead, just enquire (nicely) at the door.