Zakaria, an IÉSEG student and boxer, is pursuing his dream of becoming a champion
12/07/2020
“If I have learned anything from boxing, it’s that dreams can come true,”
explains Zakaria Ait Lemzend, a student in the Grande École Program in Lille, who started boxing in 2016.
Copyright Alain Nouvel
Originally from Morocco, Zakaria arrived in France in 2015 after his high school studies. After meeting a professional boxer who was preparing for the French Championship, he decided to take up boxing.
“Boxing and my studies at IÉSEG both require similar skills. When you are a boxer, you are not only an athlete. You have to know how to fundraise, find sponsors, recruit, and manage unexpected events, all of which are aspects of our education at IÉSEG,” he notes “In addition, discipline, which is so important for boxing, is also essential for my studies at IÉSEG and my professional life.”
In 2018, he participated in an intense week of try-outs with the objective of integrating the national Moroccan team. Even though he decided to stay in France and not to pursue this activity fulltime at the time, this experience showed him that he could handle such a challenge. Currently, he is a semi-professional boxer and hopes to go professional next year.
“I always want to evolve in order to become the best version of myself. Pushing myself to be better is my priority, and I consider myself to be my greatest rival,” he adds.
Zakaria has won 20 out of 24 fights, and hopes to try to go professional in 2021 if the health situation allows for it. In order to do this, he must participate in a fight in front of a panel of judges. He thanks his coach, Pascal Kuenzi-Duval, a high-level sports coach and educator, for his support.
In parallel to boxing, Zakaria is a member of Impakt Makers (Lille), a student association aiming to promote entrepreneurship among students at IÉSEG and for all of the School’s ecosystem. He is also exploring the possibility of creating his own company in the artificial intelligence sector once he finishes his studies.