Jerry Miller is a very focussed, determined fourteen-year-old whose life centres around Muay Thai. When I asked him
how he got into this sport, he told me he started by doing Okinawa goju ryu karate in South Wairarapa under Sensei Paul Cantwell when he was six and a half. He’d watched his mother and sister practice it since he was four and was keen to join them.
He trained consistently and achieved his junior black belt last year at age thirteen. At the end of 2023 he also started Muay Thai as he liked the fighting aspect.Although he loved karate, he moved solely into Muay Thai to follow his dream. It’s a traditional martial art and full contact sport from Thailand. Fighters use eight points of contact – fists, elbows, knees and shins – to strike and defend opponents and it involves clinching (close range grappling). It’s very focussed and you win by knockout, technical knockout or on scorecards through strikes and control on the opponent’s body. He tells me that, for juniors, under IFMA rules, they wear gear to protect the head, chest, elbows and shins.
With an undefeated record and 2026 National NZ title, Jerry has earned a spot on the NZ Blackgloves team heading to the IFMA World Youth Championships being held in Greece this coming November. So right now, his focus is on competing in these championships. Every weekday, he trains for at least two hours after school at the SMAC Gym in Featherston under Victoria Parr, a former World Muay Thai Council champion. But as well as this, he trains in any spare moment that he has. The garage out the back of his home in Martinborough is set up as a gym where he can practice and he tells me that he often spars with his mother as he moves around their house. In the weekend he runs five kilometres around Martinborough’s vineyards and on Sundays he plays soccer for Kuranui College. He says to me, “I just want to train. My aim is to be a pro. I want it to be my life.” He’s passionate about his sport and Victoria Parr, who holds the position of NZ Blackgloves Head Coach, strongly believes he will make it to the top. She says of him, “No matter what sport or aspiration he pursues he will always achieve at high level because of his ethic, discipline and coachable nature”
But there are costs involved and Jerry has always wanted to earn to help pay for these. When he was only eleven, he spent weekends washing cars to earn money. Until one day Conor Kershaw offered him a job. Working after school 3 days a week, he got the job of crushing the cardboard boxes for P&K and Mitre 10. He continues this work on weekends now as his weekdays are busy training. Now there’s the travel to Greece to raise money for and he’s looking at ways to do this. He tells me he will be doing a sponsored ‘1000 kicks’ and ‘10 km run’. The family is planning quiz nights and raffles. Anyone who wants to help Jerry get to the world championships can contact his mother Clare on mailto:millerclare296@gmail.com
