Kristina is the founding partner of GJWB and has had many roles in boxing over the past twenty years; boxer, coach, fighter manager, gym manager, corporate boxing event producer and promoter for the past ten years. Currently Kristina is a Level 2 certified boxing coach and chair of the Female Development Committee for Boxing Ontario.  Having an amazing experience as the provincial female coach travelling to the nationals in 2017-2018 with over 60 boxers and their coaches really opened her eyes to lack of women in coaching but the opportunity to encourage more. By far her biggest accomplishment over the past ten years has been the creation of a five level boxing program for women and girls of all ages, shapes, and sizes - proving that women really do want to box, for fun and for real. No matter what their fight weight in order to help them #protecthepretty !

She has been a staple in the Toronto fitness and boxing scene for the past decade after returning from time abroad in Tokyo, knowing that boxing was her heart. Kristina along with her business partner Helene are now bringing their combined passion for the sport to the masses with a line of women's boxing gear designed by female coaches and competitors, resources, education and our Virtual Boxing Club in and out of the Studio.

“The greatest fear of all... is the fear of NOT having the opportunity to fail.” Coach KJEM

Kristina graduated from The Guelph University in 2000 with a Marketing Management degree. She has run her own event production company 'K*JEM Productions' since then producing over a dozen corporate boxing shows among countless other events. At the same time Kristina has been in sales and marketing across many industries, launched, and managed a boxing club for six years and previously hosted a tv show called Pet Fashion for four seasons. These roles and experiences have all led her to create, develop, and execute this growing vision for GJWB and uniting women through their love of boxing. 

Her name is pronounced Hell-een. Before she partnered up with Kristina and GJWB she was an avid runner and has completed multiple 5km & 10km runs, two half-marathons, and 1 full marathon. Fight, fighter, or boxing were never in her vocabulary until 2012 and now she lives, eats, and breathes all things boxing. Her boxing resume is continuously growing, but she is no stranger to the fitness world. She has been working in the industry since 2012 in various roles including: reception, sales manager, fitness coach, and assistant general manager in both boutique gyms & high-end private member's clubs. It started in 2012, she worked at a boxing club in London, England where she moved after graduating from University in Halifax; it was hearing the sound of a (proper) jab landing on a heavy bag that gave her such a rush and confidence and where her boxing journey began. She moved back to Toronto in 2014 after hearing from a friend in the UK about a boxing club called CBA and she dropped in to see what it was all about. She just knew she needed to continue boxing and that is when she met coach Kristina and got involved with the Girls Just Wanna Box program. “GJWB & Kristina empowered me to not only grow technically as a boxer, but also gain more confidence to train others and become an even stronger woman.” says now accomplished in her own right Coach Helene.

“You can't fake hard work!” Coach Helene

She has completed her NCCP Level 1 Apprentice Coaching course and her Level 1 Cut Course. She was the assistant team manager for Boxing Ontario at the 2017 National's tournament in Quebec City and the team manager in Edmonton for 2018. She became an amateur fighter in March 2019; competing in her first bout. She is continuing to level-up as a coach & fighter and using the sport of boxing to help women realize how strong they are both physically and mentally. Helene is also an integral part of the Boxing Ontario Female Development Committee. When given the opportunity to partner with Kristina in 2018 and co-create GJWB online, boxing gear and a community for women, what could be more exciting!? Absolutely nothing so hands up, protect the pretty, let’s go!