NAMPA, Id. — For many athletes, a gym is simply a place to train, but for boxer Christian Palomo, it's much more than that.
"This gym is like my second home," Palomo said.
Palomo has spent most of his life around boxing. He trains at Tomorrow's Champions, a local boxing gym that started with humble beginnings but has grown into a cornerstone of the community.
See where a boxing legend trains 'Tomorrow's Champions:
The gym's owner, Carmen Medina, remembers when the building was far from the training facility it is today.
"This building had just one light bulb. One light bulb in it, and I was like, this is perfect," Medina said.
Since then, Medina has added a few more light bulbs and plenty of improvements, building a space where generations of boxers have learned the sport. At the heart of the gym is her father, Rene Medina, known throughout the boxing community as "El Gato."
The Idaho boxing veteran has been teaching fighters since the 1960s and still spends time in and around the ring, sharing decades of experience with the next generation.
The gym's name, Tomorrow's Champions, reflects a philosophy that Rene Medina has carried throughout his coaching career.
"He'll train you today and tomorrow you might become a champion," Louie Neagle, coach at Tomorrow's Champions said. "That was his philosophy. You train hard and you might be a champion, and I've always liked that about him."
Inside the gym, that message continues to inspire young fighters who lace up their gloves each day, hoping to improve with every workout.
