Suffer For Good

We're going out to my dream place.

It was my dream back in the day which was back in '84,

this Olympic place in

Los Angeles Coliseum arena.

When I come here I just go back all the way to '84,

how I work hard,

the way I ran,

and I'd spar here every Saturday,

tough sparring.

Uh, running every single morning.

To...

I work hard to be here for the Olympics.

Not only me but all the athletes,

all the Olympians, all my mates.

They work hard...

to participate for the Olympics for the L.A...

but it didn't happen.

We and the other nations of the world

cannot conduct business as usual with the Soviet Union,

and I have notified the Olympic committee

that with Soviet invading forces in Afghanistan,

neither the American people nor I will support sending an Olympic team to Moscow.

The rue to them,

we have to clearly go back to President Carter's decision

to boycott the 1980 Olympics in Moscow

because of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

East-west relations have further worsened since,

Moscow not at all happy

with President Reagan's recent trip to China.

The White House now expresses disappointment

and hopes the Russians will reconsider.

Jog.

The Soviets have now announced that they are not going to come

because they don't believe that we can offer protection,

uh, to their athletes.

And as I say,

we have been given...

we've given them chapter and verse

on what we have done,

and there had never been anything like it.

I work hard to be in the Olympic team,

after that...

Yeah.

We...

We didn't come,

and it was very sad.

Like I said again, everything's for a reason.

I ended up here anyway, God is good.

They loves the war, believe it or not.

Bring it right to him.

Come!

Don't extend here, don't extend in your arm.

Get it out. Keep moving! Keep moving!

I didn't say stop.

When I drop, I want you to keep moving.

Keep moving, in and out. Take it forward!

Straight punch, get back, one, two.

Drop. One, two, three, four, back one, two.

Keep moving. Keep moving after you punch.

Move, move, move, move, move.

Never stop, jab, hop, jab.

Life is a challenge,

as boxing is a challenge at the same time,

you lose, you win,

the same thing with life.

Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose.

I want you to change the spot.

One, two, three.

Got it? Let's go.

Anytime when I walked into a gym,

when I could work hard and I wanted to suffer a little bit in there,

I went in to do it.

Even if my flesh is getting tired, I want to get it.

I want it, I want to sweat more, I want to suffer.

And just like a soldier,

you know, when I put my shoes on

and then when my hand wraps,

I wanted to accomplish something, you know,

I want to do something.

All right, let's go. Let's go, let's go.

You're not dizzy for any quarters.

My name is Seb Zewdie, I am from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

I'm a former Olympic boxer and Olympic boxing coach,

and I'm teaching boxing in Culver City, California.

As an immigrant to the United States,

I did work to support my family.

I was a mechanic, I was a limo chauffeur,

but had to come back to boxing.

Long day, long day, huh?

We work out 5:30 in the morning...

Ebbie, let's go.

...take the kids to school,

and after that go to the gym, teach clients.

You got it.

And after that pick up kids

and bring them back home here,

and do the homework with the kids,

and after that, make...

you know, make them lunch whatever, dinner,

then go back to the gym and I teach my clients and students,

and come back home around 9:30, 10 o'clock.

Daily life, it looks like that.

Move a little bit. -MAN: Okay.

So, you're gonna say one, two, one, two, three, four, right?

He's a coach now.

So, when I say jab...

One, two...

You turned your back, I get one, two... -Okay.

One, two...

How many times I told you,

bring your back to your left arm?

One, two duck, one, two slip,

one, two back, one, two.

Got it?

Seb's great. You know, uh, his boxing is phenomenal.

Uh, I come in here strictly as an MMA fighter,

but I come here strictly for his boxing,

uh, because of his height level.

And his attention to the details of boxing

makes me keep my hands up, chin down,

and, uh, he's known for making us suffer,

so suffering for the good to getting better.

He tells me he's not happy,

and my whole job is to make Seb happy,

so when the coach ain't happy,

nobody is happy so...

He's a good instructor,

he's, uh, technical,

he's consistent,

he expects the best of you,

he expects the best of all his participants in his class,

he expects the best of himself so...

you can't come in here and give him anything less so...

At what age did you start boxing?

Oh, that's a tough one, Ebbie.

I started when I was a little kid.

I was, maybe, nine years old.

Yeah, nine, ten years old. It was really...

When did you come to America?

Before you were born. -I know.

Yeah.

Where are you guys from?

Ethiopia.

Oh, you from Ethiopia?

You told us we're from Ethiopia,

but if you're born then you're supposed to

be from here. -How come you became a Coach?

Uh, how...? Oh, whoa, whoa...

Funny thing you're asking me why I did...

Daddy, when did you start boxing?

How... Who teach you boxing?

Why did you start boxing?

You ask me tough questions sometimes.

Yeah, I didn't expect that from five years old,

questions like that.

Show me Africa.

Africa.

Around here? -SEB: Yeah.

Around there.

Okay, where is Ethiopia?

God job, Effie.

I know where's Canada, daddy.

Isn't that what is Canada?

Our area, in our village,

I was a tough kid.

My mum died when I was young.

My two sisters, they raised me,

I was with them most of the time,

and my father was in prison for political reasons.

September 12th, 1974,

the day that the emperor, Haile Selassie, was deposed

after 40 years of rule,

and he was succeeded by the military people,

and the leader of that coup, that particular movement,

was a person by the name of Mengistu Haile Mariam.

The Soviet Union regime came to Ethiopia

and US stopped helping Ethiopia.

The Soviets had this notion at the time

of a federation of socialist states

which will include Ethiopia

and other leftward leaning states

in the horn of Africa.

The socialist regime came to Ethiopia,

the United States stopped helping YMCA.

The YMCA shut down for three, four years,

and no boxing then.

Mamo Beyene found me, he's a great coach.

He was a former Olympic boxer,

and he came to my house,

and he picked me up,

he had a nice Mercedes, he has a limo Mercedes,

and he picked me up and he said,

"You're gonna be a great boxer.

I'm gonna help you."

But I started boxing when I was a nine, ten years old,

but now that time I was, like, 12 years old,

and Mamo, he has a big value in my life.

Most people became addicted by drugs, by alcohol,

by cigarettes and different habits,

but I was addicted for boxing,