Saying that “boxing is in his blood” is not just hyperbole. For Hubert Minn, it’s a fact. He can trace his love of boxing all the way back to his father Herbert who was an amateur boxer himself before becoming a respected ring official for the International Boxing Federation (IBF) and the World Boxing Council (WBC) as well as being an icon in the Hawaii Boxing Hall of Fame.
As the only coach for the University of Hawaii Boxing team, Herbert was instrumental in Hawaii winning its first two national championships. In addition, Hubert’s uncles were also drawn to sports in Hawaii, excelling in many different sports. Of the many lessons that Hubert learned from his father, the most important was to “always be humble and always keep your word.” Tradition, dedication, and hard work were always at the forefront of these lessons.
That is the legacy that Hubert Minn learned from his family and tries to follow-through in all areas of his life. As the Chairman of the Ring Officials Committee for the both the WBC and North American Boxing Federation (NABF), Hubert brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to his leadership role.
His father never pushed him to actually getting into the ring so Hubert followed his father’s boxing career outside the ropes. Hubert started judging amateur bouts in the early 1990’s in his native Hawaii and became a judge in 1997 with the Hawaii State Boxing Commission. His experience eventually led him to joining the WBC where he has earned the admiration and respect of his peers, including learning as much as he could about judging under the mentorship of legendary judges like Tom Kaczmarek and Chuck Hassett. With degrees from both the University of Hawaii and Cal State Northridge, Hubert is an educator at heart and a devoted advocate of Dr. Deming’s Quality Management Principles. As such, he has enjoyed traveling the globe to conduct quality training seminars as well as training seminars for boxing officials around the world.
Although involved in a sport where physical prowess is important, Hubert is a very introspective man who enjoys having intellectual conversations about most all subjects. He was elected Chairman of the Hawaii State Board of Education at age 30 and then went into the classroom and taught middle school for 20 yrs. He is never shy to impart the wisdom he has learned from the triumphs and tragedies in his life. A widower who was married for over 30 years, Hubert has raised two grown children including Shanti, a daughter born with Down Syndrome, who is “the love of his life.”
Hubert personally subscribes to the Japanese philosophy of “Kaizen “or “continuous and constant improvement in life.” The concept of Kaizen is the key behind the widely popular Six Sigma strategy of process improvement in companies throughout the world. As an advocate for always striving for better quality in life, Hubert both learns from his peers and teaches them as well. In the case of Hubert Minn, you can take the man out of education but you can’t take the education out of the man. We are all better because of this and because of people like Hubert Minn.