Boxing: the most powerful work from Casa d'Amato. Cus D'Amato is the best of the best. A great desire to raise a champion with his own hands forced Cas to literally live in the training room

CUS D'AMATO'S BEST QUOTES -- The first lesson I teach kids before I teach them boxing is about fear, what it is and why we have it. Fear is like fire. If you control it, how we control fire when we want to keep warm, it is a friend. When you don’t control it, it will burn you and everything around you. - A guy comes to me with a spark of interest, and it becomes fire. I add wood to this fire, and he turns into a flame. I add wood to the flame and it becomes a real fire. - When you can hit your opponent and he can't hit you, then you are a fighter. - Those born round don't die square. - Doesn't matter who says what, apologies and explanations: only what happens at the end indicates true intentions. - Heroes and cowards experience exactly the same fear. Heroes simply know how to control fear, but cowards do not. - I believe in that nature is much smarter than we think.Throughout a person's entire life, she creates pleasures for him and other people who matter to him. Then she takes it all away one by one. This is how nature prepares man himself for death. - There are no stupid people. There are those who are not interested. - There are no natural punchers. There is a natural predisposition to be a puncher, and these are completely different things. No one is born the best. You must train and improve to become the best. - I believe that a person is a professional when he can do what needs to be done, regardless of how he feels. An amateur is an amateur in his emotional attitude. A professional is a professional in the way he thinks and feels, and in his ability to act under the most difficult conditions. - A person who thinks or worries about being hit will not be in a state of good anticipation; he will actually get hit. “If he weren’t here, I probably wouldn’t be alive today.” The fact that he's here and doing what he does and doing it better gives me the motivation and interest to stay alive. Because I think a person dies when he doesn't want to live anymore. But I have a reason here with Mike. And he gives me motivation. I will live, I will see him become successful, because I will not leave this world until this happens. -- When two people enter the ring, only one of them deserves to win. When you step into the ring, you need to know that you deserve to win. You must know that fate owes you victory because you trained harder than your opponent. You ran more, sparred more. --You are your own worst enemy (If you let it be!). - Losers are winners who gave up... even if you lose... you still win... if you don't give up.

, New York, USA - November 4) - American boxing trainer who trained many fighters in professional ring, including Floyd Paterson, Jose Torres and Mike Tyson.

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    Constantino D'Amato was born on January 17, 1908 in a rough section of the Bronx called the Classon Point section. His large family (9 children, all boys) immigrated from Italy to the United States in 1899. Growing up in an exclusively male environment (his mother died when the boy was only 4 years old), Cas dreamed of becoming a professional boxer like his brother Jerry. But these dreams were not destined to come true after 12-year-old D’Amato got into a fight on the street with an adult man, as a result of which he became blind in his left eye.

    Despite this, Cas did not give up boxing and in 1939 he opened the Gramercy Gym. In it, he consistently produces strong boxers, one of whom was Rocky Graziano. Having trained him as an amateur, Cas expected to continue working with him after turning professional, but Groziano chose another manager, connected to the mafia and who had more influence in boxing. So for the first time in his life, Cas experienced for himself what it was like to “steal” a boxer in a professional ring. However, Gramercy Gym has built a good reputation for itself.

    • Recognizing the merits of Cus D'Amato, the city of New York named the street after him (Cus D'Amato Way), where the gym was once located.
    • Leading Floyd Patterson to the top, Cus refused to cooperate with the IBF, which earned himself many enemies. However, thanks to his persistence, D'Amato ensured that Patterson became the first boxer to earn a million. Under D'Amato's leadership, Patterson's boxer career took off. Already in 1952, Floyd Patterson became the youngest Olympic champion in history, winning gold in weight category up to 75 kg. Professional career Patterson was also successful in professional boxing. In 1956 he takes gold in heavyweight champion and becomes the youngest champion. Patterson owes this success to the style of Cas D'Amato. Patterson had a rather weak jaw and was, to put it mildly, small for a heavyweight, but it was difficult for his opponents to fight him, since he mastered the technique of Cas D'Amato.

    Quotes

    • The first lesson I teach kids before I teach them boxing is about fear, what it is and why we have it. Fear is like fire. If you control it, like we control fire when we want to stay warm, it is a friend. When you don't control it, it will burn you and everything around you.
    • A guy comes to me with a spark of interest, and it becomes fire. I add wood to this fire and it turns into a flame. I add wood to the flame and it becomes a real fire.
    • When you can hit your opponent and he can't hit you, then you are a fighter.
    • Those born round don't die square.
    • It doesn't matter who says what, apologies or explanations: only what happens at the end shows true intentions.
    • Heroes and cowards experience exactly the same fear. Heroes simply know how to control fear, but cowards cannot.
    • I believe that nature is much smarter than we think. Throughout a person's life, she creates pleasures for him and other people who matter to him. Then she takes it all away one by one. This is how nature prepares man himself for death.
    • There are no stupid people. There are those who are not interested.
    • There are no natural punchers. There is a natural predisposition to be a puncher, and these are completely different things. No one is born the best. You must train and improve to become the best.

    Based on sharp pendulum-like movements of the body and dives.

    Cus D'Amato
    Cus D'Amato
    personal information
    Floor male
    Full name Constantine D"Amato
    A country
    Date of Birth January 17(1908-01-17 )
    Place of Birth
    • Bronx, NY, NY, USA
    Date of death November 4(1985-11-04 ) (77 years old)
    A place of death
    • NY, NY, USA
    Media files on Wikimedia Commons

    Biography

    Constantino D'Amato was born on January 17, 1908 in the Classon Point section of the Bronx, New York. His large family (9 children, all boys) immigrated from Italy to the United States in 1899. Growing up in an exclusively male environment (his mother died when the boy was only 4 years old), Cas dreamed of becoming a professional boxer like his brother Jerry. But these dreams were not destined to come true after 12-year-old D’Amato got into a fight on the street with an adult man, as a result of which he became blind in his left eye.

    Despite this, D'Amato did not give up boxing and in 1939 opened the Gramercy Gym. In it, he consistently produced strong boxers, one of whom was Rocky Graziano. Having trained him as an amateur, D'Amato expected to continue working with him after turning professional, but Graziano chose another manager with ties to the mafia and more influence in boxing. So for the first time in his life, D’Amato experienced for himself what it was like to “steal” a boxer in a professional ring. However, Gramercy Gym has built a good reputation for itself.

    Online marathon in memory of Cas D'Amato

    From October 26 to November 4, 2017, the international project “Science of Winning” took place in the form of an online marathon dedicated to the memory of Cas D’Amato. Speakers from Russia, Ukraine, Italy, Spain, Germany and the USA took part in the project. The speakers were significant personalities in the world of professional and amateur boxing, ranging from journalists from leading boxing publications to boxing champions, including world boxing champion Silvio Branco, world champion and Olympic medalist in boxing Patrizio Oliva, journalist Alexander Belenky and others.

    They all shared their thoughts on the D’Amato phenomenon and its unique result in the form of training three world champions. The reason for holding the marathon was the writing of the book “Uncompromising Pendulum” about the style of Cus D’Amato by one of his students Tom Patti and candidate of psychological sciences Oleg Maltsev.

    Confession

    Recognizing the merits of Cus D'Amato, the city of New York named the street after him (Cus D'Amato Way), where the gym was once located.

    Quotes

    • The first lesson I teach kids before I teach them boxing is about fear, what it is and why we have it. Fear is like fire. If you control it, like we control fire when we want to stay warm, it is a friend. When you don't control it, it will burn you and everything around you.
    • A guy comes to me with a spark of interest, and it becomes fire. I add wood to this fire and it turns into a flame. I add wood to the flame and it becomes a real fire.
    • When you can hit your opponent and he can't hit you, then you are a fighter.
    • Those born round don't die square.
    • It doesn't matter who says what, apologies or explanations: only what happens at the end shows true intentions.
    • Heroes and cowards experience exactly the same fear. Heroes simply know how to control fear, but cowards cannot.
    • I believe that nature is much smarter than we think. Throughout a person's life, she creates pleasures for him and other people who matter to him. Then she takes it all away one by one. This is how nature prepares man himself for death.
    • There are no stupid people. There are those who are not interested.
    • There are no natural punchers. There is a natural predisposition to be a puncher, and these are completely different things. No one is born the best. You must train and improve to become the best.
    • I believe a person is a professional when he can do what needs to be done, no matter how he feels. An amateur is an amateur in his emotional attitude. A professional is a professional in the way he thinks and feels, and in his ability to act under the most difficult conditions.
    • A person who thinks or worries about getting hit will not be in a good state of anticipation; they will actually get hit.
    • If he weren't here, I probably wouldn't be alive today. The fact that he's here and doing what he does and getting better at it gives me the motivation and interest to stay alive. Because I think a person dies when he doesn't want to live anymore. But I have a reason here with Mike. And he gives me motivation. I will live, I will see him become successful, because I will not leave this world until this happens.
    • When two people enter the ring, only one of them deserves to win. When you step into the ring, you need to know that you deserve to win. You must know that fate owes you victory because you trained harder than your opponent. You ran more, sparred more.

    ) is an American boxing coach who trained many fighters in the professional ring, including Floyd Paterson, Jose Tores and “Iron” Michael Tyson.

    Biography

    Constantine D'Amato was born on January 17, 1908 in a rough section of the Bronx called the Classon Point section. His large family (9 children, all boys) immigrated from Italy to the United States in 1899. Growing up in an exclusively male environment (his mother died when the boy was only 4 years old), Cas dreamed of becoming a professional boxer like his brother Jerry. But these dreams were not destined to come true after 12-year-old D’Amato got into a fight on the street with an adult man, as a result of which he became blind in his left eye. Despite this, Cas did not give up boxing and in 1939 he opened the Gramercy Gym. In it, he consistently produces strong boxers, one of whom was Rocky Groziano. Having trained him as an amateur, Cas expected to continue working with him after turning professional, but Groziano chose another manager, connected to the mafia and who had more influence in boxing. So for the first time in his life, Cas experienced for himself what it was like to “steal” a boxer in a professional ring. However, Gramercy Gym has built a good reputation for itself.

    Interesting Facts

    • Recognizing the merits of Cus D'Amato, the city of New York named the street after him (Cus D'Amato Way), where the gym was once located.
    • Cos D'Amato's student Floyd Paterson became the first boxer in history to earn a million dollars in the ring.

    Quotes

    • The first lesson I teach kids before I teach them boxing is about fear, what it is and why we have it. Fear is like fire. If you control it, like we control fire when we want to stay warm, it is a friend. When you don't control it, it will burn you and everything around you.
    • Those born round don't die square
    • Heroes and cowards experience exactly the same fear. the characters just behave differently.
    • I believe that nature is much smarter than we think. Throughout a person's life, she creates pleasures for him and other people who matter to him. Then she takes it all away one by one. This is how nature prepares man himself for death.

    Cus D'Amato. I present to you a detailed biography of the great trainer Mike Tyson, Floyd Patterson, Jose Torres, Rocky Graziano, Joy Hadley, Teddy Atlas and Kevin Rooney. Description of boxing style and training.

    Childhood and youth

    Constantino "Cus" D'Amato was born on January 17, 1908, into a family of Italian immigrants, in the gangster district of New York - the Bronx. In 1899, his father and mother moved from Italy to the United States in search of better conditions life. Cas had 8 brothers. Mom died when the boy was 4 years old. The young man was brought up in a male group. An example for him was his older brother, Jerry, who began his career in professional boxing in 1915.

    Constantino first crossed the threshold of a boxing gym at the age of seven. The results were not long in coming. He finished second twice at the national tournament in New York. Cas competed in the featherweight weight category. As a very young man, D'Amato trained with the great Harry Greb. The boy was preparing to conquer professional boxing. However, his dreams were not destined to come true. In 1920, during a street conflict, a 12-year-old boy became completely blind in his left eye. Terrible injury put an end to the future career of the promising Italian.

    D'Amato considered this episode the most difficult in his life. But it was this that strengthened his incredible character, which would make him the most famous coach of the 20th century.

    Cas didn't give up training. He set a new goal for himself - discovery gym. The boy began to combine boxing with regular work as a mason and carpenter. He saved part of the money he earned for the construction of his club. At the same time, D'Amato gained experience in construction work. He formed a clear idea of ​​what his future brainchild would be like. Financial crises and lack of money stretched out the realization of his dream for long years.

    In 1939, D'Amato finally opened his own gym - Gramercy Gym.

    Coaching activities

    The Kasa club quickly gained popularity. He invented his own style, which was later jokingly called " peek-a-boo". Cas emphasized that this style, based on fast movements, raised arms high and work at medium and close range, is suitable only for young and strong guys and requires excellent endurance. One of his many students was. The two Italians quickly found a common language Rocky progressed faster than the others. D'Amato planned to start promoting him in professional boxing. Over the years, he has gained significant experience in boxing management. However, Rocky's talent was noticed by other influential people. In those days, it was difficult to conduct business without connections with mafia structures. Professional boxing was no exception. Graziano left his teacher and soon became the world middleweight champion and one of the most feared punchers in boxing history.

    Second World War distracted spectators from the ring. Hall D'Amato continued to exist. After the war, in 1945, Cas met a girl who, through her grandmother, had Ukrainian roots - Kamila Evold. He lived with her until the end of his days. The couple had no children. Kamila's sister was married for Cas's brother, Rocco.

    D'Amato's unyielding character led to numerous conflicts with influential structures of professional boxing. Cus sued the IBC for many years - " International Boxing Club". This organization is associated with mafia structures ( famous mafiosi - Frank Palermo and Frank Carbo), controlled more than half of all active professional boxers. D "Amato did not want to come to an agreement. The fight against the mafia almost led to fatal consequences. Two assassination attempts were made on Cas. The war either subsided or flared up again. IBC " blocked oxygen"to D'Amato's fighters in the professional ring. It didn't break me a strong character Italian coach. He was looking for his talent, and soon came across a difficult teenager who, under his leadership, became the 1952 Olympic champion ( Helsinki) and world heavyweight champion. We are talking about great things.

    D'Amato led Floyd to the title. Patterson became the youngest heavyweight champion. His record will be broken by another eminent student of Cus - Mike Tyson. Floyd became the first in history heavy weight who was able to regain the champion title after losing it. However, the paths of the coach and student diverged. D'Amato did not want Patterson to box with. This led to a conflict and breakup.

    In the 60s, the boxing world recognized two more famous students of Cas - Jose Torres and Joy Hadley. Jose, in 1965, won the title of absolute world light heavyweight champion in a fight against Willie Pastrano and defended his titles three times. Torres became the first Latin American light heavyweight world champion and the third Puerto Rican champion in boxing history. Joy, under the leadership of D"Amato, became a seven-time (!) winner of the tournament" Golden Gloves"and three-time American amateur champion. In " amateurs"Hadley defeated the future Olympic champion- Leon Spinks. Unfortunately, Joy's career was cut short by a terrible infection. He still continues the work of his great mentor.

    Mafia structures" pressed" and D" Amato was forced to sell his boxing club Gramercy Gym for the symbolic price of $1 to his friend Bob Jackson. In 1970, he, along with Camila, left for a small town - Catskill, where he began life with a clean slate. Cas opened new club- Catskill Boxing Club, which was located directly above the police station.

    D'Amato completely changed his attitude to training. Now he trained everyone. The main contingent: difficult teenagers from disadvantaged families. Cas spent long hours talking with them. He taught the guys to set the right priorities and choose the right direction in life. One of these students was famous - After a successful amateur career, Kevin turned professional. right hand did not give me the opportunity to fully develop my talent. Rooney became one of the main trainers in Cas's gym. The same role was played by the famous Teddy Atlas. Teddy's character was similar to the character of D'Amato himself. The gap between coach and student occurred because of Cas's most famous ward, Mike Tyson.

    Kevin Rooney became young Mike's coach. Tyson lived in Cas and Camila's house. D'Amato was involved in raising young talent. They watched for hours boxing fights and analyzed different styles. Cus was present at Mike's training, but due to poor health, Rooney led the process.

    Tyson became the youngest champion in heavyweight history, breaking Floyd Patterson's record, and the youngest absolute champion. He is the owner of many records that have not been broken to this day. Alas, the great D'Amato did not see the triumph of his main student. Cas died on November 4, 1985 from acute pneumonia a year before Mike won the WBC title in a fight against Trevor Berbick.

    D'Amato's legacy is still alive. Kevin Rooney and Joy Hadley continue the work of their teacher. Facts about Casa D'Amato

    • One of the streets of New York was named in honor of D"Amato - " Cus D'Amato Way".
    • Cas was right-handed in life, although he could write and work equally well with both hands.
    • His record in amateur boxing (in 4 years of career): 39 - 7.
    • D'Amato collected expensive watch brands.
    • At the end of 2018, director Rupert Friend will begin filming a film about Cas D'Amato. Main role will be played by famous actor Bruce Willis.