Hidden just beyond the hum of traffic on Pope Park Highway, behind the echo of passing cars and the ghost of an old nightclub, something extraordinary breathes again. Once you step through the doors of the Charter Oak Boxing Academy (COBA), you don’t just walk into a gym, you step into a legacy. This tucked-away sanctuary has been a cornerstone of Hartford’s heart for more than three decades.
Inside, laughter mingles. Coach Ike leans into a book in the corner. Ringside wraps rest beside worn gym bags and backpacks scattered near the ring. The air smells of sweat, leather, and perseverance. At the center of it all stands Johnny Callas, the man, the referee, the architect.
Johnny Callas is not just any coach. A thirty-year World Championship professional boxing referee and full-time social worker, Coach Callas built COBA as both a gym and a lifeline. One of his missions is to unite the city’s youth with college athletes, blending mentorship with athleticism and community with discipline. The connection between youth development and college boxing is not new. It is the backbone of COBA’s story.
Callas discovered his passion for boxing while attending Central Connecticut State University, where the sport gave him an outlet and a purpose. That experience inspired him to create a space where young people could channel their energy into something powerful and positive. He opened COBA in 1988 in Charter Oak Terrace, describing the first location as a “warzone.”
Robert Ford, one of the other coaches, began boxing under Callas during that time. At just fifteen years old, a champion was being shaped. Back then, Coach Ford was a kid trying to stay off the streets of Charter Oak Terrace, and COBA became the place where he found himself and stayed safe.
Coach Ford boxed through college and continues to train at COBA. During his career as Deputy Police Chief in Hartford, he remained dedicated to the sport, and in retirement, he now serves as the head coach of the University of Hartford boxing team. His daughter, Dejah Ford, carries that same passion. Once a COBA kid herself, she is now the head coach of the women’s boxing team at COBA.
Boxing at COBA feels like stepping into an old-school fight club built on perseverance. “Iceman” John Scully, a professional boxer with more than forty-nine fights in his career, now coaches and trains alongside the youth development program. “Never show you are tired,” he always says. Even as someone who is in the ring at fifty-seven years old, sparring with everyone from COBA’s young boxers to college fighters, he truly never does.
When walking into COBA as a student from Trinity College, there was no clear sense of what to expect. With no boxing experience and still finding a place at Trinity, the search was for something that felt alive. A space to become part of something real. Somewhere between Trinity’s classrooms and COBA’s ring, growth began to reveal itself through repetition, connected to learning how to carry one’s identity into the world. What unfolded went far beyond boxing or training partners; it became about people who show up for one another. At COBA, it does not matter where you come from or what your story may be. The moment you step through the doors, you belong to the same purpose.
What began as a gym has become a bridge that links generations, unites neighborhoods, and proves that discipline and mentorship can transform not only individuals but entire communities. To witness COBA in motion is to see Hartford at its most determined and most alive. It stands as both a reminder and a promise that champions are not only made in the ring. They rise in classrooms, in communities, and in the quiet resilience of those who never stop showing up.
Each spring, Trinity College hosts its Annual Home Show, bringing together colleges and boxing academies from across the East Coast for an electrifying day of competition. The Field House at Trinity College fills with energy as gloves crack, crowds roar, and the bell rings from dawn until nearly midnight. With an average of twenty-four bouts, the event is a true showcase of boxing at its best, a testament to endurance, teamwork, and spirit. Last year, Trinity had 7 of their students compete and take home wins. Trinity will continue this tradition again this year on February 28.
Hartford’s hidden fight club is more than a gym. Even if you are ten or 60, there is no barrier for you to be a part of COBA. It is proof that sometimes the most powerful punches are the ones thrown in the service of others. Its story is one we are all called to be part of. COBA stands as a living reminder that new champions, inside and outside the ring, are rising every day.
“Why did you come back to COBA?”
“I never left.” – Coach Ford
