{"id":101331,"date":"2025-12-26T13:55:08","date_gmt":"2025-12-26T13:55:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/101331\/"},"modified":"2025-12-26T13:55:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-26T13:55:08","slug":"staten-island-native-scores-big-win-at-usa-boxing-national-championships","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/101331\/","title":{"rendered":"Staten Island native scores big win at USA Boxing National Championships"},"content":{"rendered":"

LUBBOCK, Texas \u2014 Staten Island native James Gentile originally got involved in the sport of boxing after seeking a way to improve his self-defense abilities and discovering that he had a knack for play fighting with his brother. What began as a childhood curiosity has since grown into a lifelong passion.<\/p>\n

Earlier this month, Gentile, a senior at Tottenville High School, captured the 165-pound Male Youth Division title at the 2025 USA Boxing National Championships. His victory also earned him a spot on USA Boxing\u2019s High Performance team, qualifying him for the upcoming Colorado selection camp. Gentile will then set his sights on the U19 Futures Cup, scheduled to take place in Bangkok, Thailand, this coming March.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs soon as I started fighting, it\u2019s just been just nothing but boxing ever since,\u201d Gentile said simply.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t really start taking fighting seriously until I was 14. That\u2019s when I decided to fully commit \u2014 spending less time with friends and dedicating myself to the sport \u2014 because I truly loved it,” he continued.<\/p>\n

That decision has clearly paid dividends for Gentile, who has emerged as one of the top boxers in both the New York metropolitan area and the nation. <\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like everything is falling into place, and everything I wanted is coming to me,\u201d Gentile said. \u201cI still have to perform and I do my best, but I\u2019m where I\u2019ve wanted to be since I was little. I just have to keep do my thing, keep my head on straight, and keep my position.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite entering the National Championships as a dark horse after recently changing weight classes, he described the thrill of fighting in the final rounds of the tournament as the standout moments of his recent boxing journey.<\/p>\n

\"StatenStaten Island native James Gentile receives his championship belt after winning his weight class at the USA Boxing National Championships in Lubbock, TX on Dec. 13, 2025ABC School Photo Inc<\/p>\n

\u201cI went in there as a big underdog and put on a big performance in the semifinals, not dropping and giving a standing count to the No. 1 guy in the country. I feel like a lot of people saw how much better I got and really started seeing who I am because I put on such a good performance.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTwo days later, I fought the number two kid in the country, still as an underdog. People saw how that fight went, and I felt more confident, like everyone was a little more on me. The second fight was just as good as the first, but more technical. The kid was pretty game, too, but I still put on a dominant performance and won,\u201d he went on.<\/p>\n

Recently, Gentile also received a prestigious invitation to train at the New York Athletic Club under the guidance of Richard Stephenson, a USA Boxing\u2013certified coach with more than 15 years of experience in the sport.<\/p>\n

NYAC will certainly be one of Gentile\u2019s best opportunities to train at the highest level, but he said that \u201cwhat definitely got me to this point is all of the Staten Island boxing community\u2019s support.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhether it\u2019s been training at the Berry Homes or Hard Knocks<\/a>, all the different gyms here on Staten Island have definitely helped me along the way,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Given that traveling from the South Shore of Staten Island to midtown Manhattan can take up to a four-and-a-half-hour round-trip commute, Gentile said that while his mentors and support system have carried him through difficult moments, much of his determination has ultimately come from within.<\/p>\n

\u201cCoaches have definitely been important, but it is an internal mindset, because if you\u2019re not strong and you don\u2019t have the mind for it, you\u2019re not going to go anywhere,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe little bumps in the road are where weaker people stop. It\u2019s all in your head, because boxing is all mental. If you\u2019re scared, you don\u2019t know what to do, or you\u2019re down on yourself, you\u2019re not going to go anywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also shared that training with a variety of coaches throughout his career has added a multifaceted dimension to his boxing style, saying, \u201cTraining under Coach Stephenson, it\u2019s a totally different style compared to what I\u2019ve seen before, and I\u2019ve picked it up quick.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s perfect because it works through my old style. This style makes me more of a multidimensional fighter, because I can go inside and bang it out. At the same time, since I started learning here, I picked up being on my back foot, jabbing, hooking, and making sure I\u2019m not getting hit. Between the two styles, it\u2019s really hard to get past me,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

With the 2028 Olympics on U.S. soil approaching, Gentile said that while he has a long way to go, competing in the Games would be the honor of a lifetime.<\/p>\n

\"StatenStaten Island native James Gentile looks to land a blow on his opponent at the USA Boxing National Championships in Lubbock, TX earlier this month.ABC School Photo Inc<\/p>\n

\u201cIn my opinion, I think an Olympic gold medal is bigger than becoming a world champion,\u201d Gentile said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re representing your country, your hometown. It means so much more; of course, being a world champion is great, but the chance at a gold medal only comes around a few times. There hasn\u2019t been a gold medalist in America since 2004, so to have your name up there in history would mean a lot,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"LUBBOCK, Texas \u2014 Staten Island native James Gentile originally got involved in the sport of boxing after seeking…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":101332,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[168,170,169],"class_list":{"0":"post-101331","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-lubbock","8":"tag-lubbock","9":"tag-lubbock-headlines","10":"tag-lubbock-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101331","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=101331"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101331\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/101332"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=101331"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=101331"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=101331"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}