“Boxing is more than just an escape from the chaos of the streets or the baggage of what’s behind to those who find their way into the gym, and ultimately, the ring. Boxing can be the road – and has been for many over the generations in hard scrabble America – to the way in life. “
“That’s the story shared by Ventura resident Alicia Doyle in her nonfiction memoir Fighting Chance, chronicling the young journalist’s unlikely emancipation from her life’s hardships through immersion into the “sweet science” of boxing.”
We are happy to report that Alicia Doyle has won the Best of Los Angeles Award – “Best Autobiographical Book – 2021”, according to Aurora DeRose, award coordinator for the Best of Los Angeles Award community.
The “Best of Los Angeles Award” community was formed five years ago and consists of over 7,400 professional members living and working in Southern California. It celebrates the best people, places, and things in Los Angeles with the slogan “No Ads. No B.S. Only the Best.”
“The mission of the community is to celebrate the best of Los Angeles, and allow its community members to connect with other members who share the highest standards of quality and integrity,” expresses DeRose. “We’re honored to include Alicia Doyle into our BoLAA family.”
In the 1990s, Alicia Doyle went on an assignment at a boxing gym for at-risk youth known as Kid Gloves. It was during that assignment that she discovered boxing at age twenty-eight. She simultaneously worked as a newspaper reporter while training and competing as a boxer for two whole years. She became one of a few hundred women who infiltrated a male-dominated sport in America.
Alicia Doyle ended up winning two Golden Gloves championship titles. In 2000, she had her pro debut, which was named The California Female Fight of the Year. Her book, “Fighting Chance”, offers insight into her journey, and a peek into one of the toughest sports out there.
