Graduate student Friederike Knupling spars with Mike Francois at the East Palo Alto Boxing Club.
"Closeness in Boxing," a collaboration between humanities scholars and the East Palo Alto Boxing Club, reveals the intimate side of violence in the ring. An unlikely collaboration between the East Palo Alto Boxing Club and Stanford humanities researchers has revealed that the combination of physical intimacy and trust between boxers cultivates unexpected interpersonal connections. After coming to Stanford for graduate school, Friederike Knüpling, a doctoral candidate in German studies , continued her boxing hobby at the East Palo Alto Boxing Club. It was there that Knüpling, a German native, got more interested in how the constant closeness of the sport allowed the boxers to relate to one another in a uniquely non-verbal medium. Boxing, Knüpling said, allows her to feel a sense of "at-homeness" with people from different cultural backgrounds. "As a foreigner, it was interesting for me to interact and get closely involved with people in a way that was completely separate from language." Knüpling frequently trained at the gym with the young boxers who took part in its nonprofit program, which focuses on providing a safe, healthy space for youths as well as hobbyists and amateur boxers. She noticed the close-knit community among the athletes.
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