Carol Polis isn’t as well-known as Billie Jean King or Gloria Steinem.
But Polis certainly made her contribution to the women’s movement of the 1970s.
Fifty years ago, she became the world’s first female boxing judge, appointed by then-Pennsylvania Gov. Milton Shapp.
“It was very exciting,” said Polis, now 87 and living in Southampton. “The TV stations and newspapers were all there.”
Her judging career lasted 36 years. She retired in 2009 after judging 143 fights, including 27 championship fights in nine different countries.
She got into judging by chance.
“My husband at the time was a boxing judge and he’d take me with him,” she said. “He taught me how to score because he thought it would keep me entertained. He showed my scorecard to the commissioner. He liked what he saw, and it went from there.
“I learned a lot and started enjoying being acknowledged for doing a good job, but it started to cause problems at home. I was getting better fights than my husband (Bob) and he started to resent it. But I wasn’t going to give up because he was upset. I was good at it.”
Polis grew up in Jenkintown, attending Abington High School, where she was a cheerleader, played tennis and swam. She earned an associate’s degree in philosophy from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1956.
Her book, “The Lady is a Champ,” co-written with Rich Herschlag and published in 2012, is available on Amazon.
She was inducted into the Philadelphia Jewish Sports Hall of Fame and Pennsylvania Boxing Hall of Fame in 2020.
“They were both very big honors,” she said.
Polis retired to Cape Coral, Fla., but lost everything when Hurricane Ian came to down.
“My home completely flooded,” she said. “I had just been in a car accident so I wasn’t 100% to begin with, and then I ended up on my kitchen counter bailing water from the kitchen into the sink. I’m lucky the sink didn’t back up, or I would have drowned in my own home.”
Polis was eventually rescued but had to start over.
“That’s when I decided to move back to Pennsylvania to be near my daughter,” she said. “I was just devastated. I lost so many mementos from my whole life, things that could never be replaced.”
She raised four children and beat breast cancer. She was diagnosed with the disease in 2007 and as a survivor, tries to pass her experience on to others as a professional speaker.
“I’ve done a lot and I just like sharing my story,” she said.
“When I moved to Florida the Cape Coral Chamber of Commerce asked me to be their keynote speaker. I had mostly spoken to men’s groups but this time I spoke to about 80 women. I thought they wouldn’t be as interested, but I was wrong.
“When it was over, they lined up to give me a hug or tell me that I broke the glass ceiling. They were thrilled that I broke into a male-dominated field and I was a lady about it.
“When I was in Florida, I was busy all the time. Now that I’m back in Pennsylvania, I’d like to be more active.”
One of the ways she’d like to engage in the community is through speaking engagements.
Polis was popular on the speaking circuit and would like to re-light that flame.
Her message is simple but useful to everyone.
“With courage, anything is possible,” she said. “I truly believe that and that’s what I want to share with everyone.”
To book Polis to speak to your organization, contact her at Apricot4631@yahoo.com or 610-804-9379. In addition to her message of hope, spectators are treated to a host of stories from her days as a boxing judge.
“I’ve met some pretty big-time boxers and had a lot of things happen,” she said. “Some are funny, and some are just unbelievable.”
She was a regular at the Blue Horizon, the historic arena in Philadelphia.
“I have great memories from that place,” she said. “I saw a lot of big fights there.”
Her speeches always begin with the theme from “Rocky,” a nod to both her background as well as a cameo appearance she made as a judge in “Rocky V.”
“Being in the movie was a lot of fun,” she said. “That was just a great experience. I was fortunate to have a lot of great experiences and I hope to have more.”
She’d still like to judge another championship fight.
“I have to get my passport renewed, but I’d really like to do that,” she said. “I think I’ve got one more in me.”
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