These words of the famous French director, who is passionate about boxing, are often repeated by the World Champion in heavyweight, Vitali Klitschko. For our hero, the accomplished ex-boxer and Armenian boxing coach, Arman Sargsyan, this sport is not just like life, but rather a school of life, a way of life, and more precisely, life itself.
It all started with a simple fascination with this spectacular and courageous sport. As a child, Arman loved watching boxing on TV with his father. The fights of strong men appealed to the boy, and deep down, he dreamed of learning to box just like them. And his dream of boxing quickly came true. At the age of 6, his mother took him to the Olympic Children and Youth Sports School for Boxing named after Vladimir Engibaryan, not just any section.
In those times, it was fashionable among teenagers to be strong, and boxing, like no other sport, gave absolute confidence in oneself. But for Arman, boxing was always more than just a hobby. He knew what he wanted and how to achieve his goals, so he trained hard and persistently. This paid off. At the age of 15, the boxer became the champion of Yerevan in the 48 kg category, at 18 – the silver medalist of the Armenian championship in the 51 kg category, and at 21 – the champion of the Central Federal District of Russia boxing championship in the 60 kg category. In amateur boxing, the athlete had about 110 fights, of which he only lost 4. During this time, he achieved the rank of Master of Sports.
In 2003, at the age of 23, Arman Sargsyan began his professional boxing career by moving to Moscow. It marked a new phase in his sports career with entirely different opportunities. Soon after, he made his debut on the professional boxing ring. His experience in amateur boxing helped him excel further and quickly reach title fights. Within a year, as part of the “Preparation of World Champions in Russia” program, Arman won a match against the Belarusian champion, and in 2006, he became the holder of two titles: the Russian Champion in lightweight boxing and the Champion of the CIS and Slavic countries according to the WBC (World Boxing Council CIS and Slovac Boxing Bureau). In 2007, he became the Asian Champion according to the WBC (World Boxing Council Asian Boxing Council), and in 2008, he won the World Champion title in lightweight boxing according to the WBL, scoring a knockout victory over Mexican boxer Leo Martinez in the seventh round. It was his first professional boxing match in the United States. In total, Arman fought 14 professional boxing matches, winning all 14 and 8 of them by knockout.
After retiring from his professional boxing career, Arman Sargsyan became actively involved in coaching. In 2017, he founded a boxing school where he trains children and adults in the sport and prepares competitive athletes. Over 200 people from different countries around the world have become students of the former champion. From 2015 to 2018, Arman was a first-category sports judge. In 2019, he moved to the United States where he coaches Russian professional boxer Petros Ananyan, who competes in the super lightweight weight category.
Considering that boxing is not only a sport, but also an ideal self-defense system that every teenager should possess, as well as an excellent way to maintain physical fitness, Arman volunteers to train children at an elementary school in Burbank, California on a voluntary basis. Despite spending most of his life as a champion boxer and now a coach, he dedicates all of his free time to his family, dog walks, and his hobby of Nordic walking. Arman Sargsyan is a bright example of how a simple childhood passion for boxing turned into a lifelong pursuit.
