They train daily in a gym they share with the men’s team, using gloves with frayed seams and worn-out punching bags. Since Rim Jouini’s victories, women’s boxing in Tunisia has grown to include more than 500 registered athletes and has earned international medals in every weight class. For these young women, putting on the gloves is as much a sport as it is a way of choosing their own path in life.
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Photographs and captions: Images de Tunisie. Full reportage available on request, including images not featured in this edit.
The first Tunisian woman to reach the podium at an international competition—bronze medalist at the 2010 Amateur World Championships and a member of the 2012 London Olympic team—she now coaches the women’s national team. She says she sees herself in her boxers: at their age, she used to ride the subway without a fare so she wouldn’t miss a training session.
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A ring for two teams
Gloves with frayed stitching, worn-out bags, uniforms that don’t match the national colors: sports account for 1.67% of government spending, and boxing receives only a pittance of that. The ring at the Cité Sportive is shared on a rotating basis between the women’s and men’s teams—there isn’t another one.
Sejnane
Champions in Three Months
Two hundred kilometers from the capital, in a town in the Mogods region plagued by unemployment, a club opened its training sessions to both girls and boys. Three months later, two of the girls were Tunisian champions in their respective weight classes. The club still does not have a ring.
500+
licensed within the territory
9 h
mixed training sessions per week
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a ring shared by both teams
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Rim Jouini, African champion and bronze medalist at the 2010 World Championships, coaches the women's national team.
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Red training helmet; worn and shared from one session to the next.
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Two female boxers spar in front of the mirrors in the gym, between the warm-up cones.
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Punching bag work behind the ropes of the ring, in the green and pink corner of the gym.
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A direct hit to the face during a brawl in the ring, with the crowd cheering in the background.
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Stretching on the floor, lying on the mat, at the end of the session.
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The heavy bag bounced back after the punch, in the old gym with peeling walls.
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Closed guard behind the bag, a series of strikes against the light.
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A jump rope, headphones on, before moving on to the gloves.
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Fifteen minutes of jumping rope at the edge of the ring, my shirt soaked.
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Boxing shoes hanging on a hook: a detail that reveals the wear and tear of the seasons.
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Standing in front of a window in the gym, her hair tied back before entering the ring.
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A female boxer watches the round while sitting against the ropes, with her coach in the opposite corner.
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A brawl in sweatshirts and leggings, in the ring.
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The coach is working on the bear-paw guard under the national flags.
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The ring is occupied by several pairs taking turns, with the coach to the right of the frame.
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Straight from the forearm through the ropes—the last round of the session.
« If you box, it's because you're choosing your own life. »
Rim Jouini, coach of the women's national team
PhotographsNicolas Fauqué — Images de Tunisie
TextLaura-Maï Gaveriaux, pour Les Échos Week-end
LocationsCité nationale sportive de Tunis
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