AZALEA BOXING: Set for Saturday and Sunday at Schwartz Center, and it’s free

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Boxing has been part of the Azalea Festival for 35 years. Williston Middle School in Wilmington has served as the location for the Azalea Festival boxing tournament for most of those years, but that will not be the case this weekend. Attendance at the event has been low the past few years. A venue change appears to be a good thing and the Schwartz Center right in the heart of downtown Wilmington will be the new location for Azalea Festival boxing.

Andre Thompson is the chairman of boxing at the Azalea Festival. “We’ve been trying to get downtown for awhile, it’s time for a change. It will be a two day event again,” Thompson said. “It’ll be free and the goal is to turn it into a national tournament. We’ll start at 2pm on Saturday and 2:30 on Sunday. We won’t start until the queen gets here on Saturday. Once again it’s free to the public.”