Don Cleto Reyes Centenary

This Sunday marks the hundredth anniversary of the birth of the man who created the Gloves of Champions.

By Rodolfo Rosales S.

This Sunday marks the hundredth anniversary of the birth of the man who created the Gloves of Champions.

On April 26, 1920, our founder, Don Cleto Reyes Castro, was born into a humble family; They were times of national reconstruction after 10 years of revolutionary struggle in our country.

The economic situation throughout Mexico was difficult and the family of Don Cleto Reyes was no exception, so he started working at the age of 12, in a saddlery workshop where baseball mitts were made, that was his approach to the trade.

In Mexico, at the end of the 30s, there was a boxing fever due to the trilogy made up of Juan Zurita, Rodolfo "Chango Casanova and Joe Conde; infected by it, Don Cleto participated in a spontaneous fight, in the Peralvillo-Cozumel arena and gave such a good performance that the public threw coins into the ring.

However, the blows received were enough to convince him not to fight again and as he said, that night was my debut and farewell to the ring.“.

It was boxing that marked his life and gave the world one of the best products: fighting gloves!!

Subsequently, he obtained the approval of the Professional Boxing Commission of the Federal District, because together with Dr. Gilberto Bolaños Cacho, at that time head of the Commission's Medical Services, they sought a way to avoid brain damage in boxers as much as possible.

The greatest stimulus as a manufacturer came on April 18, 1945, the year in which Cleto Reyes' gloves were used for the first time in the first World Championship fight in our country. The Mexican Juan Zurita exposed his world lightweight title against the American Ike William, in the Plaza de Toros La Condesa.

In 1954, Don Cleto decided to work on his own, always counting on the help of his wife Martita Pérez and their small children. Thus, a workshop of barely nine square meters, was the cradle of what are today the world-renowned Gloves of Champions.”.

From wide open he shaped his gloves, while Doña Martita helped him sew and her children to put the laces on him.

His product was perfected thanks to the advice of managers of that time, such as Pancho Rosales, José Morales, Pepe Hernández, Juan Peláez and others; as well as the fighters themselves.

The year 1963 was very relevant for Mexican boxing since on February 14, with the support of the then president of Mexico, Adolfo López Mateos, the World Boxing Council was created and with it boxing took off and the proliferation of great world champions, who took Cleto Reyes gloves to Europe, the United States and Japan, becoming their ambassadors and that is how their fame grew, thanks to the quality of their products.

Then, in 1965, Don Cleto Reyes had his first representative in Los Angeles, Norman Lockwood, who began distributing his articles in the most important markets in the United States of America.

Don Cleto passed away on January 3, 1999, leaving his name in one of the best brands of boxing gloves and this Sunday we celebrate the centenary of the creator of the champions' gloves.