Advances in Physical Education
2014. Vo l.4, No.1, 29-35
Published Online February 2014 in SciRes (htt p://www.s cirp.org/journal/ape) http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/ape.2014.41005
OPEN ACCE SS
29
Boxing Performance May Benefit from Pertaining of the
Boxer to a Given Zodiacal Sign
André Mu kala Nsengu Tshibang u
Department of Basic Sciences, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Kinshasa, P.O. Box 212,
Kinshas a 11 , De m o cratic Rep ublic of the Co ng o
Email: andre28080@lycos.com
Received N o v ember 25th, 2013; r ev ised December 25th, 2013; accepted January 5th, 2014
Copyrigh t © 2014 André Mukala Nsengu Tshibangu. This i s an open acces s arti cle dist ributed u nder th e Crea-
tive Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any me-
dium, provided the original work is properly cited. In accordance of the Creative Commons Attribution License
all Cop yrights © 2014 are reserved for SCIRP and the owner of the intellectual property André Mukala Nsengu
Tshibangu. All Copyright © 2014 are guarded by law and by SCIRP as a guardian.
The aim of t he pres ent study is not to provide the r eader wit h a proof of ast rology’s val idity. Th e present
stud y has b een undert ak en in the a im of pro viding th e coa ch wi th an ori ginal tool for identi ficat ion of t he
candidates more advantaged than others to boxing practice, in the case that the coach has too numerous
candi dates to dea l with. Micr osoft Offic e Excel 200 7 program has b een used in the a nalysis of data gath-
ered fr om BoxR ec .c om, t he web b ased da t aba s e, about t he Wor ld t op 100 mal e boxer s B oxRec . c om-rated,
reti red on Mar ch 26th, 2013 . The study has shown tha t boxi ng perfor manc e may be infl uenced b y pertain-
ing of the boxer to given zodiacal signs: 1) Regarding all victories pulled together, the most disadvan-
taged are Sagittarius signs. As other zodiacal signs related to the element Fire, they probably rarely dis-
play tactful behavior. Their resulting impulsiveness may make them neglectful of their defense. 2) Re-
gardi ng all los ses pull ed together, the most dis advantaged a re Aqua rius signs . As other zodiacal s igns re-
lated to the element Air , they probably think too m uch bef ore they act; and t hey tend to rise a bove conflict
and to float around it. All that may affect negatively their attack velocity and defense velocity. 3) Re-
gardi ng non-KO vic tori es and KO losses , the most a dvanta ged are Sc orpi o signs. Cont rar y to other Wat er
signs which a re used to det est al l form of c onflict , they oft en seek out chall enges and p roblems, sublimi-
nally realizing that such challenges call forth their greatest strength and resources. That may probably
help them not to neglect their attack, what is expectable in other Water signs. 4) Regarding all victories
pulled together, all losses pulled together, and non-KO losses, the most advantaged are Virgo signs. Re-
garding KO victories, the most advantaged are Taurus signs. As other Earth signs, when driven back
agai ns t a wa ll , Vi r go and Ta ur us si gns ar e c a pabl e of hit ti ng t he obs t acl e ha rd w it h ful l for c e. Tha t is par-
ticularly true of T aurus, the fi xed Ear th, who will never seek out confl icts but who is capable of surprising
power . The known s oundn ess of Eart h signs may help Vi rgo and Ta urus signs to contr ol both t heir at tack
and defense actions, performing them only when they feel that they are going to be successful. 5) Re-
garding boxers lif e spans, the most advantaged ar e Libra and Sagitta rius signs.
Key words: Astr ology; Boxing; Element s; Performance; Zodiacal Signs
Introduction
Sport Scie nc e and Sport Talent
Athletes reach their full potential if some factors are com-
bined: physical capacities, biomechanics, physiological capaci-
ties, psychological makeup, a work ethic that includes an ap-
propriated attitude toward training, and the opportunity to
compete with athletes of a similar or superior level, particularly
during the process of sport talent development (Ackland,
Bloomfield, & Elliot, 2009).
If sport talent is to be fully developed, coaching based on
sound sport science principles is an essential ingredient while
“raw athletic talent” is the most important factor in the attain-
ment of high levels of sporting performance (Ackland, Bloom-
field, & Elliot, 2009).
But, as far as we know, raw variables such as zodiacal sign,
the element to which the zodiacal sign is related, or any other
variable related to the athlete date of the birth, have not yet
been used in the identification of sporting talent. However,
obtaining such variables is relatively easy, taking into account
the fact that their determination does not require so sophisti-
cated tools as those required for the determination of most of
other variables (equipment required for complete anthropomet-
ric assessment of athletes, video linked to appropriate software
and a computer, etc).
Astrology
Speaking of an a-causal connecting principle that he calls
law of correspondences “synchronicity”, C.G. Jung, in refer-
ence to astrology, points out that whatever is born or done at a
particular moment in time inevitably bears the qualities of that
moment (Arroyo, 1975).
In the field of psychology, every theory of personality as-
sumes that there is such a thing as “human nature” which the
A. M. N. TSHIBANGU
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30
new-born brings with him into this world, chiefly in the form of
general predispositions and potentialities rather than specific
traits (Arroyo, 1975).
In the field of medicine, Dr. Eugen Jonas, a Czecho slo vakian
psychiatrist and gynecologist, found that a child conceived
when there is an opposition of the sun and any larger planet (i.e.,
when the sun and the planet were 180˚ in longitude from each
other) has a much greater chance of suffering birth defects,
miscarriage, mental retardation, and other factors which nega-
tively affect his health (Arroyo, 1975). It is not unsound to
expect that such a child be disadvantaged in the practice of
boxing.
Elements
Reading Arroyo’s book Astrology, psychology and the four
elements: An energy approach to astrology & its use in the
counseling arts (1975) may help one learn what follows about
the elements: 1) Every individual is composed of all four ele-
ments (F ire, Air, Water, and Ear th ) and cann ot exist if even one
of the elements is missing, for he would be totally devoid of the
function of the related energy both psychologically and physi-
cally; 2) After the Medieval-Renaissance theory of the four
humors (choler or yellow bile, blood, phlegm, and black bile)
which was related to the elements of astrology, when these four
humors were mixed in exactly the right proportions in an indi-
vidual, he would be healthy and have a well-balanced person al-
ity, while a slight predominance of one humor or element
(whic h we all have, according to our natal charts) affects not
only a man’s physical characteristics but also his complexion
and temperament; 3) The elements most emphasized in a natal
chart b y planetary place ment and the element of the Ascendant
show what energies one is capable of utilizing rather easily in
his o r her everyday li fe, as well a s i n what real ms o f exper ien ce
one can participate naturally and spontaneously; and 4) Ele-
ments that are lacking emphasis in the chart reveal an attune-
ment which must be consciously cultivated and developed in
order to afford the individual the minimal participation in that
field of experience required for a full and well -rounded lif e .
It is not hence unsound to expect that boxing practice may be
influenced by the predominance of any element (which we all
have, accor ding to our natal ch arts).
Zodiacal Signs
The zodi acal signs are the twelve primary patterns o f energ y
resulting from the combination of the four elements and the
three vibrational modalities: 1) cardinal (Aries, Libra, Cancer,
and Capricorn); 2) fixed (Leo, Aquarius, Scorpio, and Taurus);
and 3) mutable (Sagittarius, Gemini, Virgo, and Pisces).
The four elemen ts are rel ated to the zo diacal signs as follows:
1) Fire (Aries, Leo, and Sagittarius); 2) Air (Libra, Aquarius,
and Gemini); 3) Water (Cancer, Scorpio, and Pisces); and 4)
Earth (Capricorn, Taurus, and Virgo).
Thus, the element ‘Earth’ in the ‘fixed’ vibrational modality
results in the zodiacal sign of Taurus, for instance.
Astrology as a Tool for Identification of Boxing
Talent
As astrology enables a person to determine the type of activ-
ity in which his or her life-energies can flow with the greatest
ease and satisfaction (Arroyo, 1975), used properly, it can help
an individual to develop a greater degree of self-reliance and
self-confid ence: so often , a person feels d eeply that h e has spe-
cial abilities in a cert ain area, for example, bu t the lack of con-
fidence or trust in self may make it difficult to act upon this
feeling (Arroyo, 1975).
Fro m a standpoint of interest for the boxing coach we are, we
expect astrology be used as a tool for identification of the can-
didates more advantaged than others to boxing practice, in the
case that we have too numerous candidatures to deal with.
That has strengthened our desire to point out whether or not
boxing performance is influenced by the 12 zodiacal signs (Ar-
ies, Leo, S agittari us, Lib ra, Aquari us, Gemini , Cancer, Scorpi o,
Pisces, Capricorn, Taurus and Virgo) and/or by the 4 elements
to which the 12 zodiacal signs are relat ed.
Thus, the aim of the present article is not to provide the
reader with a proof of astrology’s validity: the article is aimed
to provide the coach with a parameter that relate to success in
boxing practice.
Material and Methods
The subjects enrolled in the present study are the World top
100 male professional boxers, BoxRec.com ranked, and retired
in the period of time lasting from the beginning of professional
boxing practice t o March 26th, 2013.
Microsoft Office Excel 2007 program has been used in the
analysis of data gathered from BoxRec.com, the web based
databas e, about the boxers.
BoxRec.com failed to show the day of birth of one of the 100
boxers. We have thus dealt with the 99 remaining. The 99 box-
ers have been split into their respective zodiacal signs. The
boxers falling into the different zodiacal signs have been
grouped according to each of the 4 elements related to the signs:
that resulted in 4 groups, each composed of boxers pertaining to
3 different zodiacal signs.
The number of all victories pulled together and all losses
pulled together, the number knock-out (KO) victories and KO
losses, as well as the number of draws made it possible to
compute 1) non-KO victories and non-KO losses as well as 2)
all matches fought pulled together for each boxer.
For each boxer, as a function of all matches pulled together,
percent ages have b een computed : per cent ages of 1) all victories
pulled together, 2) KO victories, 3) non-KO victories, 4) all
losses pulled together, 5) KO losses, 6) non-KO losses, and 7)
draws.
For each boxer, career length h as been co mputed sub tracting
the debut year from the retirement year .
Regarding the boxers concerned by the present study but
dead on March 26th, 2013, life span has been computed sub-
tracting the boxer’s year of birth from his year of death.
As a function of each zodiacal sign and as a function of each
element, for each variable taken into account, it has been noted
the number of the boxers concerned and it has been computed 1)
a mean, an d 2) the variance about th e mean.
For each variab le t aken in to acco un t, the d ifference s bet ween
the means have been examined for significance, considering
both boxers number and the variance about the mean.
The number of values in each sample being less than 30, and
the data being presented not in the form of measurements but
taking the form of percentages, we felt uneasy to assume that
the popu lation variances wer e equal (Par ker, 1979). Testing the
significance of the difference between two means by the Stu-
A. M. N. TSHIBANGU
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31
dent’s t test, we have thus used the following expressions in our
computations.
( )
12
22
1 21122
t XXsNsN

=−+

 
()()()
2
212
111 1fuNu N
= −+−−
( )( )()
2 22
1111 22
u sNsNsN

= +

In those expressions, t is the Student’s t; is the mean of a
sample; s2 is the variance about the mean of the sample; N is
the number of values in the sample; f expresses the degrees of
freedom; and u is defined by the above mentioned expression.
Probability significance level has b een set at p = .05 or less.
Results
All Victories Pulled Tog ethe r
Regarding all victories pulled together (Table 1), it appears
that 1) Virgo signs are significantly advantaged over 8 signs:
Aries (p < .05), Sagittarius (p < .002), Aquarius (p < .01), Libra
(p < .01), Pisces (p < .01), Cancer (p < .05), Scorpio (p < .05)
and Capricorn (p < .05); 2) Cancer signs (p < .05) as well as
Capricorn signs (p < .05) are significantly advantaged over
Sagittarius signs; 3) Cancer signs (p < .05) are significantly
advantaged over Libra signs and 4 ) other examinations showed
no significant advantage of a sign over any other.
No significant difference has been found between the means
of the 4 elements when comparison was call ed for (Tabl e 2).
Tabl e 1.
Zodiacal signs and all victories pulled together.
Zodiacal sign N s2
Aries 83.9 1318734 12 83.8066278
Leo 81.60009743 6 97.5130136
Sagittarius 76.0 3149533 8 73.89508743
Aquarius 79.16251 863 8 31.85124549
Gemini 83.66430069 9 95.00474424
Libra 78.30557205 9 51.39683343
Pisces 73.19526559 6 1 26.0123499
Cancer 84.99041357 12 44.51835664
Scorpio 82.94824515 5 37.60085205
Capricorn 84.64545933 9 50.33843022
Taurus 84.77353878 10 99.17500424
Virgo 92.4350745 5 31.96920193
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
Table 2.
Elements and all v ictories p ulled together.
El ement N s2
Fire 80.5149267 3 16.41346387
Air 80.3 7746379 3 8.286061958
Water 80.37797477 3 3 9.73609629
Earth 87.28469087 3 19.8 989397
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
KO Victories
Regarding KO victories (Table 3), it appears that 1) Taurus
signs are significantly advantaged over 3 signs: Sagittarius (p
< .05), Aquarius (p < .05) and Scorpio (p < .05); and 2) other
examinations showed no significant advantage of a sign over
any other.
No significant difference has been found between the means
of the 4 elements when comparison was call ed for (Table 4).
Non-KO Victories
Regarding non-KO victories (Table 5), it appears that 1)
Scorpio signs are significantly advantaged over 2 signs: Cancer
(p < .05) and Taurus (p < .02); 2) Sagittarius signs are signifi-
cantly advantaged over 1 sign: Taurus (p < .05); and 3) other
examinations showed no significant advantage of a sign over
any other.
No significant difference has been found between the means
of the 4 elements when comparison was call ed for (Table 6).
All Losses Pulled Together
Regardin g all l oss es pull ed to gether (T able 7 ), i t ap pears that
1) Virgo signs are significantly advantaged over 3 signs: Sagit-
tarius (p < .01), Aquarius (p < .01) and Libra (p < .01); 2) Aries
signs (p < .05), Cancer signs (p < .05), Scorpio signs (p < .05)
and Capricorn signs (p < .05) are each of them significantly
Table 3.
Zodiacal signs and KO victories.
Zodiacal sign N s2
Aries 46.84293353 12 486.5956 572
Leo 44.4479851 6 313.1653282
Sagittarius 33.14471636 8 338.3689657
Aquarius 37.37080691 8 238.4347602
Gemini 46.49254903 9 365. 0702419
Libra 37.40654348 9 431.2477423
Pisces 38.34717 284 6 381.2088096
Cancer 49.2523434 12 234.4680 05
Scorpio 30.19826532 5 348. 1327246
Capricorn 42.288821 9 399.4293451
Taurus 54.80314877 10 248.5211085
Virgo 56.49559635 5 576.568537
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
Table 4.
Elements and KO victories.
El ement N s2
Fire 41.478545 3 53.5234693
Air 40.42329981 3 27.62715891
Water 39.26592719 3 91.39755505
Earth 51.19585538 3 60.21754066
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
A. M. N. TSHIBANGU
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32
Table 5.
Zodiacal signs and non-KO victories.
Zodiacal sign N s2
Aries 37.0 7025381 12 319.7290171
Leo 37.15211233 6 118. 6470845
Sagittarius 42.8 8677897 8 146.7620997
Aquarius 41.79171 172 8 175.9270857
Gemini 37.17175165 9 178.2631472
Libra 40.89902857 9 282.4080593
Pisces 34.84809276 6 1 51.3189416
Cancer 35.73807017 12 116.0983419
Scorpio 52.74997983 5 180.0105193
Capricorn 42.35663833 9 306.7192033
Taurus 29.97039001 10 116.7584076
Virgo 35.93947815 5 479.1889427
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
Table 6.
Elements and non-KO victories.
El ement N s2
Fire 39.0363817 3 11.12084454
Air 39.95416398 3 6.005584574
Water 41.11204759 3 101.7791152
Earth 36.0888355 3 38.37151 758
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
Table 7.
Zodiacal signs and all losses pulled together.
Zodiacal sign N s2
Aries 11.2 9042244 12 54.67385 975
Leo 15.30725303 6 100.227858
Sagittarius 17.3 8010321 8 46.93096084
Aquarius 17.49755 347 8 21.50414768
Gemini 11.35434061 9 48.64422998
Libra 16.19893442 9 20.58879611
Pisces 15.45423872 6 8 8.92567927
Cancer 12.13432083 12 36.34393642
Scorpio 11.4731742 5 11.53450347
Capricorn 11.35057511 9 38.48425728
Taurus 12.38874 365 10 66.51521347
Virgo 6.32 5166291 5 24.35500007
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
advantaged over 1 sign: Aquarius; and 3) other examinations
showed no significant advantage of a sign over any other.
No significant difference has been found between the means
of the 4 elements when comparison was call ed for (Table 8).
KO Losses
Regarding KO losses (Table 9), it appears that 1) Scorpio
signs are significantly advantaged over 4 signs: Aquarius (p
< .05), Pisces (p < .05), Cancer (p < .05) and Taurus (p < .05);
and 2) other examinations showed no significant advantage of a
sign over any other.
No significant difference has been found between the means
of the 4 elements when comparison was call ed for (Table 10).
Non-KO Losses
Regarding non-KO losses (Table 11), it appears that 1)
Virgo signs are significantly advantaged over 3 signs: Sagitta-
rius (p < .02), Aquarius (p < .05) and Libra (p < .05); and 2)
other examinations showed no significant advantage of a sign
over any other.
Table 8.
Elements and all losses pulled togeth er.
Element N s2
Fire 14.65925956 3 9.585974616
Air 15.01694 283 3 10.4 8259415
Water 13.02057792 3 4.551307393
Earth 10.02149502 3 10.51658303
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
Table 9.
Zodiacal signs and KO losses.
Zodiacal sign N s
2
Aries 3.001703214 12 6.145236 275
Leo 3.293868626 6 4.87 0855998
Sagittarius 2.437144414 8 1.246708591
Aquarius 3.957281385 8 5.762328159
Gemini 1.863145238 9 1.90 9107821
Libra 3.589898907 9 7.834428762
Pisces 3.689208 654 6 3.786382572
Cancer 3.025605571 12 4.332431888
Scorpio 1.412244726 5 .650928522
Capricorn 2.913095863 9 9.908470539
Taurus 3.68102577 10 7.534817 256
Virgo 1.696871293 5 3.64 0733892
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
Table 10.
Elements and KO losses.
El ement N s
Fire 2.910905418 3 .189677274
Air 3.136775177 3 1.250342387
Water 2.70901965 3 1.371311166
Earth 2.763664309 3 1.000964589
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
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33
No significant difference has been found between the means
of the 4 elements when comparison was call ed for (Table 12).
Draws
Regarding draws (Table 13), it appears that 1) Virgo signs
showed significantly less draws than 4 signs: Aries (p < .02),
Sagittarius (p < .02), Libra (p < .02) et Cancer (p < .05) ; and 2)
other examinations showed no significant advantage of a sign
over any other.
No significant difference has been found between the means
of the 4 elements when comparison was call ed for (Table 14).
Career Length
Regarding career length (Table 15), examinations revealed
nothing but non-significant differences between the means of
zodiacal signs.
No significant difference has been found between the means
of the 4 elements when compari s on was called for (Table 16).
Life Span
Regarding life span of the boxers concerned by the present
study but dead on March 26th, 2013 (Table 17 ), it app ears that
1) Libra signs had life spans significantly longer than those of 3
signs: Leo (p < .02), Capricorn (p < .05) and Taurus (p < .02); 2)
Sagittarius signs had a life span significantly longer than that of
1 sign: Leo (p < .05); and 3) other examinations showed no
significan t advantage of a sign over any other.
No significant difference has been found between the means
of the 4 elements when comparison was call ed for (Table 18).
Table 11.
Zodiacal signs and non-KO losses.
Zodiacal sign
N
s2
Aries 8.288719 228 12 57.67072 52
Leo 12.0133844 6 108.1005093
Sagittarius 14.9 429588 8 48.65849526
Aquarius 13.54027208 8 17.36519814
Gemini 9.491195369 9 41.66439525
Libra 12.60903 551 9 29.3493229
Pisces 11.7 6503006 6 103.5700311
Cancer 9.108715 263 12 28.24934391
Scorpio 10.06092947 5 13.91625899
Capricorn 8.437479248 9 54.18521268
Taurus 8.707717885 10 66.02220865
Virgo
4.628294998
5
31.46452108
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
Table 12.
Elements and non-KO losses.
El ement N s
2
Fire
11.74835414
3
11.12240684
Air 11.8 8016765 3 4.497191827
Water 10.31155827 3 1 .811113175
Earth
7.25783071
3
5.204100776
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
Table 13.
Zodiacal s igns an d draws.
Zodiacal sign N s
2
Aries 4.79 639022 12 17.51136478
Leo 3.092649548 6 11.1 4163748
Sagittarius 6.588401461 8 18.75747076
Aquarius 3.339927903 8 7.109209626
Gemini 4.981358704 9 31.5 1504344
Libra 5.495493529 9 14.67484805
Pisces 11.35049 569 6 106.8584545
Cancer 2.875265599 12 3.894615946
Scorpio 5.578580654 5 12.0446888
Capricorn 4.003965554 9 12.29146562
Taurus 2.837717564 10 4.90196972
Virgo 1.239759213 5 1.00 1023988
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
Table 14.
Eleme nt s an d dr aws .
El ement N s
2
Fire
4.825813743
3
3.055719667
Air
4.605593379
3
1.267515477
Water
6.601447314
3
18.74207342
Earth 2.69381411 3 1.925740 326
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
Table 15.
Zodiacal s igns an d care er le ng th.
Zodiacal sign N s
2
Aries 18.41666 667 12 39.71969697
Leo 17.33333333 6 16.26666667
Sagittarius 18.375 8 25.41071429
Aquarius 15.75 8 14.78571429
Gemini 17.66666667 9 43
Libra 19 9 55.5
Pisces 16.5 6 17.1
Cancer 17 12 34.90909091
Scorpio
17.6
5
56.3
Capricorn
15.55555556
9
14.52777778
Taurus 17.8 10 40.62222222
Virgo
15.8
5
43.2
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
Table 16.
Elements and career len g th.
El ement N s
2
Fire
18.04166667
3
.376736111
Air
17.47222222
3
2.668981481
Water 17.03333333 3 .303333333
Earth
16.38518519
3
1.516213992
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
A. M. N. TSHIBANGU
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34
Table 17.
Zodiacal s igns an d life sp an.
Zodiacal sign N s2
Aries 68.4 10 145.3777 778
Leo 54 5 188.5
Sagittarius 74.375 8 347.9821429
Aquarius 67 6 1 20.8
Gemini 64.85714286 7 3 39.8095238
Libra 79.71428 571 7 120. 5714286
Pisces 68.66666 667 6 347. 8666667
Cancer 71.16666 667 6 92.1 6666667
Scorpio 69.25 4 172.25
Capricorn 68.42857143 7 5 5.95238095
Taurus 64.71428571 7 58.9047619
Virgo 68 3 417
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
Table 18.
Elements and life span.
El ement N s2
Fire 65.59166667 3 1 09.7002083
Air 70.5 2380952 3 64.49659864
Water 69.69444444 3 1 .710648148
Earth 67.04761905 3 4.129251701
is the mean of a sample; N is the number of values in the sample; s2 is the
variance about the mean of the sample.
Discussion
No significant difference has been found between the means
of the 4 elements when comparison was called for, regarding
any of the variables taken into account in the present study.
However, t he functions of energies r elated to the four elements
may explain the few significant results found between the
means of th e 12 zodiacal signs when co mparison was called for,
regarding afore said variables ta ken in to account.
In her book on chart comparisons How to Handle Your Hu-
man Relations, Lois H. Sargent gives great importance to the
elements as a means of understanding how different people
approach problem-solving (Arroyo, 1975). Psychologist Ralph
Metzner studied the relationship that exists between the ele-
ments an d personali ty types, as well a s the astro logical cor rela-
tions with the elements (Arroyo, 1975). According to those
studies, from the standpoint of dealing with conflicts or obsta-
cles in their lives, there exist four types of people: Fire signs,
Air signs, Water signs, and Earth signs.
Success in boxing competition requires from the boxer quan-
titatively to neglect neither attack nor defense actions; to per-
form those actions with sufficient velocity; and to manage
soundly one’s energy, attacking only when one feels that he is
not going to fail the intended action.
Fire Signs and Boxing Competition
The impulsiveness of a boxer may make him neglectful of
his defense. Th e legal targets of hi s body are thus easy to reach
by his opponents. The boxer is hence more prone to be won
than to be winner of his opponent.
In Sargent’s opinion, the Fire signs respond to situations with
intensity, desiring direct action in the solving of problems, and
tending more to impulse than deliberation. According to
Metzner , the Fire signs tend to overpower obstacles, to burn
them up, or to scare them away through show of force, and they
rarel y display behavior that co uld be termed tactful.
It is not thus surprising that regarding all victories pulled to-
gether, it appears in the present study that the most disadvan-
taged are Sagittarius (Fire) signs: they show less victories than
3 signs: Cancer (p < .05), Capricorn (p < .05), and Virgo (p
< .002).
Air Signs and Boxing Competition
The attack velocity and defense velocity may be negatively
affected in a boxer who is busy thinking too much for a pugilist
as well as in a boxer who attacks with a too low frequency. The
boxer is thus more loser-prone than winner-prone.
According to Sargent, the Air signs people like to reason
things out and generally think before they act. In Metzner’s
mind, the Air signs tend to rise above conflict and to float
around it.
Consequence of that may be reflected in the results we have
obtained, according to which, regarding all losses pulled to-
gether, it ap pears that th e most disadvan taged are Aquar iu s (Air)
signs: they show more losses than 5 signs: Aries (p < .05),
Cancer (p < .05), Scorpio (p < .05), Capricorn (p < .05), and
Virgo (p < .01).
Water Signs and Boxing Competition
When a boxer has no control over his emotions, he may be so
impressionable that he may be most of the time defending him-
self and neglecting his attack of which normally depend any
victory his, either KO or non-KO.
In Sargen t’s mind, th e Water signs are impressio nab le, sensi-
tive, and intuitive. They incline to wait on circumstances for
guidance in solving problems. In Metzner’s opinion, the Water
signs also detest all form of conflict (with the exception of
some Scorpios). They tend to flow around it, over it, or if all
else fails – to slowly wear away the person or thing in their path.
Scorpio, however, often seeks out challenges and problems,
subliminally realizing that such challenges call forth their
greatest strength and resources. Still, Scorpio most of the time
will maintain a pregnant sil ence, not wantin g to cause unneces-
sary conflict.
That may explain why, regarding non-KO victories, it ap-
pears after our results that the most advantaged are Scorpio
(Water) signs: they show significantly more victories than 2
signs [Cancer (p < .05) and Taurus (p < .02)], despite the fact
that 2 Ear th signs are the most advant aged, sp eaking of all vic-
tories pulled together and KO victories. The Scorpio (Water)
signs also show significantly less KO losses than 4 signs:
Aquarius (p < .05), Pisces (p < .05), Cancer (p < .05 ) and Tau-
rus (p < .05).
Earth Signs and Boxing Competition
A boxer may be so sound that he controls both his attack and
defense actions, performing them only when he feels that he is
A. M. N. TSHIBANGU
OPEN ACCE SS
35
going to be successful.
In Sargent’s opinion, the Earth signs are motivated by the
desire for practical, useful results. They usually have sound
common sense, whether they use it or not. According to
Metzner, the Earth signs tend to disdain conflict. However, if
they are driven back against a wall, they are capable of hitting
the obstacle hard with full force. This is particularly true of
Taurus, the fixed Earth, who will never seek out conflicts but
who is capable of surprising power and anger if pushed too far.
That is consistent with our results according to which: 1)
Regarding all victories pulled together, it appears that the most
advantaged are Virgo (Earth) signs: they show significantly
more victories than 8 signs [Aries (p < .05), Sagittarius (p
< .002), Aquarius (p < .01), Libra (p < .01), Pisces (p < .01),
Cancer (p < .05), Scorpio (p < .05), and Capricorn (p < .05)]; 2)
Regarding KO victories, it appears that the most advant aged are
Taurus (Earth) signs: they show the afore mentioned surprising
power, being significantly advantaged over 3 signs [Sagittarius
(p < .05), Aquarius (p < .05) and Scorpio (p < .05)]; 3) Regard-
ing all losses pulled together, it appears that the most advan-
taged are Virgo (Earth) signs: they show significantly less
losses than 3 signs [Sagittarius (p < .01), Aquarius (p < .01) and
Libra (p < .01)]; 4) Regarding non-KO losses, it appears that
the most advantaged Virgo (Earth) signs show significantly less
losses than 3 signs [Sagittarius (p < .02), Aquarius (p < .05) and
Libra (p < .05)].
Signs and Bo xing Career Length
Regarding career length, significant difference has been
found when comparison was called neither between the means
of the 4 elements nor between the means of the 12 zodiacal
signs. The functions of energies related to the four elements do
not help us explain the reason why.
Signs and Bo xers Life Spans
Regarding life spans, the functions of energies related to the
four elements also do not help us explain 1) the absence of
significant difference between the means of the 4 elements; 2)
the significantly longer life spans of Libra signs over 3 signs
[Leo (p < .02), Capricorn (p < .05) and Taurus (p < .02)]; and
the significantly longer life spans of Sagittarius signs over 1
sign [Leo (p < .05)].
Conclusions
At the end of the present study dealt with in the top 100 male
boxers BoxRec.com-rated, retired on March 26th, 2013, we
draw the following conclusions:
1) No significant difference exists between the means of the
4 elements when comparison is called for, regarding any of the
variables taken into account in the present stud y.
2) Regarding all victories pulled together, the most disad-
vantaged are Sagittarius signs. As other zodiacal signs related
to the element Fire, they probably rarely display tactful behav-
ior. Their resulting impulsiveness may have made them ne-
glectful of their d efen s e.
3) Regarding all losses pulled together, the most disadvan-
taged are Aquariu s signs. As other zod iacal signs related to the
element Air, they probably think too much before they act; and
they tend to rise above conflict and to float around it. All that
may have affected negatively their attack velocity and defense
velocity.
4) Regarding non-KO victories and KO losses, the most ad-
vantaged are Scorpio signs. Contrary to other Water signs
which are used to detest all form of conflict, they often seek out
challenges and problems, subliminally realizing that such chal-
lenges call forth their greatest str ength and r esour ces. That may
probably have helped them not to neglect their attack, what wa s
expectabl e in other Water s igns.
5) Regarding all victories pulled together, all losses pulled
together, and non-KO losses, the most advantaged are Virgo
signs. R egarding KO victo ries, th e most advant aged are Tauru s
signs. As other Earth signs, when driven back against a wall,
Virgo and Taurus are capable of hitting the obstacle hard with
full force. That is particularly true of Taurus, the fixed Earth,
who will never seek out conflicts but who is capable of surpris-
ing power. The known soundness of Earth signs may have
helped Virgo and Taurus signs to control both their attack and
defense actions, performing them only when they have felt that
they were go ing to be successful.
6) Regarding boxers career length, significant difference has
not been found when comparison was called for between the
means of th e 12 zodiacal signs.
7) Regarding boxers life spans, the most advantaged are Li-
bra signs and Taurus signs.
Perspective
In some poor regions of the World, there exists a lack of
modern tools for identification of the candidates more advan-
taged than others to boxing practice. The present study has
revealed pertaining of the boxer to a given zodiacal sign as a
cheap tool usable for the purpose. We are already in search of
other deep tools usable for the same purpose.
REFERENCES
Ackland, T. R., Bloomfield, J., & Elliot, B. C. (2009). The assessmen t
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field (Eds.), Applied anatomy and biomechanics in sport (pp. 3-9).
Champain, IL: Human Kinetics.
Arroyo, S. (1975). Astrology, psychology and the four elements: An
energy approach to astrology & its use in the counseling arts. Se-
bastopol, CA: CRCS P ublica tions.
Parker, R. E. (1979). Introductory statistics for biology (2nd ed.). New
York: Cambrid ge University Press.