Paul Kariya's sister

[sahyder1]

Kariya earns decision in pro debut

Canadian Press

5/28/2005 7:44:27 PM

GATINEAU, Que. (CP) - Noriko Kariya, the sister of NHL star Paul Kariya, won a majority decision over American Cindy Christian in her professional debut Saturday.

One judge scored the fight 38-38, while the others had it 39-37 and 40-36 for Kariya, a native of North Vancouver.

The five-foot-one, 117-pound Kariya started the four-round fight at Casino de Lac Leamy slowly, but finished strong and won the final two rounds on all three scorecards.

''It feels good to get it done. It's been a year waiting for me,'' the 21-year-old Kariya said. ''I was a little rusty when I went first went in, but I see what I have to do and I feel good about that. I'm intelligent and I know what's going on so I'm going to keep improving and keep learning.''

Kariya's trainer Greg Ardon said he was happy with his boxer's first pro fight, but expects more from her next time out.

''I'm happy with the performance but I'm not satisfied because I know she can do better,'' he said. ''She has to continue to work hard and improve.''

Christian, who is 1-4-1, was impressed with her opponent.

''She's good, she's quick, she's fast on her hands, fast on her feet,'' Christian said. ''She did a real good job with good movement.''

Kariya was 9-1 as an amateur and already loves the pros.

''The gloves feel like mittens,'' she said. ''I love the speed of not having the headgear on and your head feels like a pin. I really liked it.''

Edited May 29, 2005 by sahyder1

[Lowerdeck]

Eh, someone's got to be a asskicker in the family. If it can't be him, let someone else do it.