by: John Rodriguez
In 2004 the sports drama Million Dollar Baby directed, co-produced, scored, and starring Clint Eastwood won several Oscars at the 2004 Academy Awards. Hilary Swank who stars as Margaret Fitzgerald, an amateur female boxer who is trained by Eastwood’s character, won the 2004 Oscar for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role due to her resounding transformation into a boxer. The transformation can be accredited to Boxing champ Maureen Shea who trained Swank for her Oscar-winning role in the film. And now from the ring to the big screen Shea will be gracing the small screen when she conquers reality tv.
The Mexican and Irish-American Bronx native is going to make her small screen debut when she hosts a reality show about female boxers which is slated to air in Mexico. The show entitled Todas Contra Mexico (All Against Mexico) will bring a international team of boxers to box against a team of Mexican boxers. The one similarity between all boxers, they are all female. When asked about her latest venture outside the ring, Shea, commented that the show will bring attention to female boxing because, “For a long time, the public ignored female boxing, but there has been a shift in recent years. This is a big moment for female boxing.”
The show will center on the lives of the women and highlight their grueling boxing regimen as they embark on a challenge to retrieve the $100,000 grand prize. According to Shea, audience members can expect to see how female boxers—like every other woman—have, “a different drive than men, because we have to fight to validate ourselves.” And Shea knows from experience. The reigning North American Boxing Federation featherweight champ, Shea ranked ninth in the world among female featherweights. Shea attributes boxing to helping her, “find the strength [she] didn’t know [she] had,” and it also helped her move on from an abusive relationship she was in.
Although Shea never intended to be a role model her life just seemed to evolve into one due to both her perseverance and strength, “I’m human. I’ve been through depression. I’ve been bullied, kicked out of high school. I really struggled growing up.” And you can expect to learn more about Shea since she plans on sharing some of her experiences in the new show, along with her determination to shine a spotlight on the once ignored world of female boxers. The show starts shooting next week, and you can expect it to hit airwaves and maybe the internet once it’s finished. So let’s get ready to…wait and watch.
