> Kronk Gym

Kronk Gym is one of the most storied boxing institutions in American history, founded in 1921 in Detroit, Michigan and named after Detroit City Councilman John Kronk. The facility gained worldwide renown under legendary trainer Emanuel Steward, who began coaching there in the early 1970s and built it into one of the most feared boxing programs of the 1970s and 1980s. Steward trained a lineage of world champions out of Kronk, most notably Thomas Hearns (multiple-division world champion), Hilmer Kenty (Kronk’s first world champion in 1980), Milton McCrory (WBC welterweight champion, 1983), Jimmy Paul (IBF lightweight champion, 1985), Duane Thomas (WBC light middleweight champion, 1986), and Steve McCrory, who won flyweight gold at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. In 1984, four Kronk team members were ranked in the AIBA world top ten across different weight classes simultaneously. The original facility at 5555 McGraw Avenue closed in November 2006 due to infrastructure damage; a second home at 9520 Mettetal Street operated from 2015 until flooding forced another closure in 2020. The Kronk Gym name and program survived both disruptions and reopened in December 2025 at the historic Brewster-Wheeler Recreation Center at 670 Wilkins — the same building where Steward himself first boxed as a youth.