Estimated read time: 7-8 minutes
For 10-year-old Tanner Gurule, fifth grade was not going well. Classmates teased him about his new glasses. He had trouble fitting in, despite following his parents advice to be himself. He felt bullied.
So one day at school when he was getting harassed in line, he turned around and fought back. That led to more fights and a few trips to the principal's office. His parents decided it was time for an outlet to help him learn some self-discipline. That turned out to be Fullmer Brothers Boxing Gym.
Now 22, Tanner laughs about his first experience with the gym. "We pull up, (my dad) opens the door, and you can just smell it," he said.
"Smelled like a real bad men's gym and blood everywhere on the mat," said Ted Gurule, Tanner's father and now head coach for Rocky Mountain Golden Gloves and Fullmer Brothers Boxing. "And I said, 'This is the place for you.'"
Today, Fullmer Brothers gym looks completely different, but their mission — helping kids learn to handle life inside and outside of the ring — hasn't changed.
Providing a safe haven
Retired professional boxers Jay, Gene and Don Fullmer began offering free boxing lessons to youth on the west side of Salt Lake Valley in 1978. "Uncle Jay started training kids in his backyard," said Larry Fullmer, the son of American Middleweight champion Don Fullmer.
As young boys, the Fullmer brothers learned to box under the guidance of mentor Marv Jenson. They wanted to give back to the community in the same way Marv had helped them.
"A lot of the kids don't have a lot," Larry said. "They come from different backgrounds, maybe a little lower socioeconomic background. And some of them are troubled kids."
While the gym does teach kids to box, there's much more to it. "They learn self-respect; they learn self-esteem. They learn not to worry about the bullies," Larry said. "We try to build better kids out of them."
Just months after he started training with the Fullmers, Tanner said, he felt different.
"I remember sixth grade, after the summer, I just had this confidence in me. By the time seventh grade hit, I took the bronze in the Junior Olympics down in Dallas," he said. "I just had a different confidence. I dress different, I talk different, I held myself different. Yeah, it was exactly what I needed."
Continuing the Fullmer brothers' legacy
Though all three brothers died over a decade ago, the gym and its purpose have continued with the Fullmers' sons.
"It's just something we wanted to carry on, a legacy for our dad and uncles — and we wanted to keep it free for the kids," Larry said. "When you see the kids come down here, working out, it's just really heartwarming to know that they've got a place to come, because you'll see that a lot of the kids don't have a lot."
Ted said, "Kids come here and they know they're safe. Parents know they're safe. Most of our kids here are from broken homes, and they're looking for some safety, some guidance."
The real deal
"We're really teaching them to box," Larry said. "We have a number of national champions that have come out of here, especially the women."
Every year, they take a team to the National Golden Gloves, Junior Golden Glove Nationals and the USA Boxing Nationals. This year, two Fullmer Brothers' boxers took home Junior Golden Gloves titles in their respective divisions. "We have good success," Larry said.
Not only are the boxing lessons free, but Fullmer Brothers also covers competition expenses for the team, from airfare to food and lodging. "You never know who's poor or rich in this gym," Ted said.
A new home
Over the years, the gym's location has moved around to wherever there was room available, including a chicken coop, an old school and an unused church. In 2019, after 14 years in an old equestrian center, the Fullmers learned they were once again going to lose their space.
"We thought: We need our own place so we don't keep getting kicked out and moved all over," Larry said. So they formed the Fullmer Legacy Foundation, and they set to work.
"We started knocking on doors and raising money," Larry said. The state of Utah, corporations and many private donors chipped in. The Salt Lake County Parks and Recreation gave them the land for a 50-year lease "for very little," Larry said. "When they see how it helps kids, then they're willing to open their pocketbooks a little bit."
The Fullmer brothers' fame doesn't hurt either — Gene Fullmer was the World Middleweight champion, and Jay Fullmer was a prominent boxer too.
The foundation is still short about $1 million of its $7 million goal, but they're working on community projects in hopes of raising the rest.
Not your average gym
In the beginning, Larry was just hoping for a small building, but the plans soon expanded. In May 2025, Fullmer Brothers opened the doors to an all-new, two-story, 16,500-square-foot home at 10960 S. Park Road in South Jordan.
The gym is all you'd expect from a high-end facility: a boxing ring and stadium seating, punching bags, weights, stationary bikes and an area for virtual boxing. There's even a mini museum featuring memorabilia from the Fullmer brothers' pro boxing years.
One thing you wouldn't expect? A glass-enclosed room set aside for doing homework, complete with computers, tables and couches. Keeping up with schoolwork is another way Fullmer Brothers helps youth.
"I know Coach Ted will even check the kids' grades. And if they're doing bad, then they can't come in (to practice) until they bring their grades up," Larry said. "We're putting together programs now where we'll have volunteer tutors come in and help the young men and young women with their schoolwork."
Seeing the results
"The first day that this opened, I stood up on the balcony and looked down," Larry said. "And I could see kids in the boxing ring, boxing. I seen kids punching the bag. I seen kids doing their exercise. I seen a coach up in the exercise room teaching the beginners how to hold their feet and how to throw a jab and so forth.
"And I just stood up there and got pretty emotional just to know that it's being used. To come in and see their wide eyes looking at everything and thinking: 'Wow, this is really the gym we get to work out in!' That was really rewarding."
Winning outside the ring
Larry doesn't know how many youth have worked out with Fullmer Brothers, but he estimates they've helped thousands of youth. He knows of many past boxers who are now business owners, including several — both men and women — who have opened their own boxing gyms.
"That's how these coaches get paid: We see success in these kids," Ted said of the all-volunteer coaching staff.
"My wife always asks, 'Why are you doing this? You're crazy.' And then I start thinking, 'Yeah, I am crazy. I don't know why I'm doing this,'" Larry said. "And then a kid will come and thank me."
Some who trained with the brothers are now bringing their own kids to the gym.
Building a better life
Over the years, Tanner has been in over 100 fights, with a roughly 72% win record. His next goal: the 2028 Olympics. But his time with Fullmer Brothers reaches beyond success in the ring.
"I don't even like to think about who I would be without this gym. I am who I am because of this gym and my parents," he said. "When I look at myself when I was 10 to when I look at myself when I was 12, it's like: What in the world? Who are these kids? Completely different kids, you know? Definitely," he said.
"I love putting on my boxing shoes, but I love taking them off because it means you did right. You did something," Tanner said. "It's a sense of accomplishment."
