Taken from Issue 16 of 10 Men Australia - TRANSFORMATION, EVOLVE, JOY - out Thursday, September 18.

Ruben Moreira is the boxing poet who stole our hearts in Paris this season. He is the partner of the artist, photographer and designer Ana Kraš and together they have founded the beautiful and offbeat Teget homewares. Moreira gives us a peek into the diametrically opposed world of his words and his fights. Well, it’s what makes him tick. Wearing an array of Chanel watches, naturally…

Tell us when you first started boxing and what motivated you.

I started when I was something like 15, I think for different reasons. I got influenced by the fact that my father liked it and I also really admired Muhammad Ali – he was my childhood hero. Finally, I got into it maybe mostly because I liked the values that it carries, such as courage, respect, humility and pride.

What is it that you love about boxing? What does it give you?

What I love about it is that I hate it. I truly hate it. Sometimes I could cry before entering the boxing gym because I’m tired and don’t want to go through what is waiting for me. But then I go in and do it. The fact that I am able to tame my fears and stay so close to discomfort makes me feel wider. I feel like I expand so much as a person and it allows me to have a much more honest relationship with myself and others. I know that fear is natural and not shameful and that I can face it.

How many fights have you had, both professional and amateur?

Eleven amateur fights and one professional in Thailand, and I’ve won the National Championship of Universities twice.

You also write poetry, which seems so gentle in comparison. Which came first?

I started boxing because I could feel that I am very, very gentle, and if you are gentle you need to also be tough, otherwise it can turn into a weakness. I accept my gentleness now that I have more confidence in my ability to deal with fear and I’ve established this hate/love relationship with discomfort and challenges.

What inspired you to write? Did you love literature or music at school?

Rap music inspired me to write. It was so popular among my friends that at some point we all wrote lyrics. I could feel that the melodic aspect of it was far from obvious to me and not a way to express myself, but rhymes and sentences would come to me.

What or who inspires you to write your poems?

Everything and no one. When I was a kid I had a game with my sister to give each other two words and we had to make a poem.

This issue is about transformation and change. What is the biggest change you’ve been through?

I think meeting my girlfriend, Ana Kraš, has been in a way the biggest change I’ve gone through. It opened a new way of looking at life, because she changed my perception of so many things. For a long time, it was almost painful to have all my marks shaken. She opened my mind and it has been a curse and a blessing at the same time.

Soon after I met her this poem came to me:
J’ai envie de te dire des mots que tu comprends pas
T’es venu dans ma vie, t’as ouvert les fenêtres,
Maintenant il y a du vent et j’ai tout le temps froid

In translation:
I wanna tell you words that you don’t understand
You came to my life, you opened windows
Now there is a wind and I am always cold

When I met Ana, I felt like she was opening a window in my mind, a new lens to look at the world through. And this brought discomfort, but I could never close the window. Importantly, she is not someone who believes so much in the power of words. She made me see that there are facets of existence that words can’t tell or, at least, they are not the best tools. Through her I discovered that there is being beyond words.

Has there been a pivotal moment in your career that enlightened you?

I don’t consider that my career ever started. My biggest ‘achievement’ so far is when I succeeded, after five years of studying law at university, in taking the bar exam. But that is still not what I want to be in my life, even though it is a step towards somewhere. I don’t consider modelling a career. I think it is a great opportunity that allows me to make enough money to live while giving me time to build a business. And to keep studying [philosophy at university].

What has been the best time of your life so far?

Honestly, I don’t believe in such a thing as a time of my life. I think life works the same way a watch does – I believe in the movement of the clock, not in any particular moment. What’s beautiful is that life is being constantly made. There are ups and downs but the movement never stops, and I enjoy this journey. I can’t isolate a single moment.

When it comes to quiet time, do you have mindfulness practices?

I would say that my mindfulness practice is sport. It’s a time to face myself every day, a place where I can’t cheat or lie to myself. A moment where I am extra-mindful. And I love to sleep too – some nights are so delicious that I wake up with a sweet taste in my mouth.

chanel.com

Photographer BYRON SPENCER
Fashion Editor MERCEDES RIGBY
Text ALISON VENESS
Talent RUBEN MOREIRA at Select Models Paris
Grooming JOEL PHILLIPS
Production RD PRODUCTIONS
Production assistant THIBAUT THIERRY
Shot at STUDIO ZERO
Timepieces throughout by CHANEL Watches, clothing throughout by BARRIE

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