"Hanson, a transgender man, moved to Brooklyn in 2014 seeking a change from his home in Wisconsin. Mamyrkanov, who is Central Asian and Muslim, came to the city as an asylum seeker in 2019, fleeing religious and ethnic persecution in Russia. Both took roles as trainers at Gleason's as a way to meet new people while staying connected to the sport they love."
"While the two didn't have much in common on a surface level, their love of the sport spoke for them, with Hanson saying they "had that connection pretty much right away." Mamyrkanov, the only instructor at the gym who teaches in the Soviet boxing style, began imparting his knowledge to Hanson, and an unlikely friendship blossomed. "We're both incredibly serious about boxing, so that's something that unifies us," Hanson says. "He's also just incredibly friendly."
A trainer and friend failed to show up for shifts at Gleason's Gym, prompting worry and a search that revealed his detention by ICE. The absent trainer, Talap Mamyrkanov, arrived in New York as an asylum seeker in 2019 after fleeing religious and ethnic persecution in Russia. His colleague, Nolan Hanson, a transgender man who moved to Brooklyn in 2014, described a close bond built through boxing and mutual dedication to the sport. Mamyrkanov taught a Soviet boxing style and became a valued instructor and friend, making his sudden disappearance deeply unsettling to the gym community.
Read at Advocate.com
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