Rigoberto Alvarez, the brother of Tapatio boxing world champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, as told to Stephen Woodman.
I was born in Guadalajara in 1978, but we didn’t stay long. My family would travel from town to town as my father tried his luck setting up an ice cream business. After years of moving, we finally settled in the tiny town of Juanacatlán. It was a nice childhood. I have six brothers and a sister and I am the oldest sibling. After school, we all worked selling ice pops and ice creams. Me and my brothers would play-fight all the time, sparring each other in the bedrooms and the patio. To us, the whole house was a boxing ring.
In 2000, I started boxing professionally. After a few successful fights I set off for Tijuana, hoping to kick-start my career. I soon found out that it wouldn’t be that easy. I didn’t have the right promotion and I couldn’t support myself.
At this point, I wanted to quit boxing. I drove back to Juanacatlán. It is a 30-hour journey, so I was exhausted by the time I arrived. As soon as I got home, my brother Saúl asked me for the gift I had promised. “Where are the gloves and helmets you told me you were going to bring?” he said.
“They’re in the car,” I answered and threw him the keys so I go inside to speak to my family.
Some 20 minutes later, he arrived with about ten kids he’d got together from the neighborhood.
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