Tag Archives: Tokyo 2020

boxing, Olympics

Three Fighter Locker stable members competing in The Olympics

Leave a comment

BOSTON (June 6, 2021) – Ryan Roach’s Fighter Locker managerial company will have three representatives competing in Tokyo this summer in the Summer Olympic Games.

Colombian light flyweight Yuberjan “El Tremendo” Martinez, who captured a silver medal at the 2018 Olympics in Brazil, is currently rated fourth in the world by AIBA.  His main opposition figures to be Artur Hovhannisyan (Armenia), Oscar Collazo (Puerto Rico) and Nodirjon Mirzakhmedov (Uzbekistan).

Martinez lost in the 2018 Olympic championship final to Uzbekistan’s Hasanboy Dusmatov, 3-0.   A decorated amateur, Martinez won gold medals at the 2018 Central American and Caribbean Games and 2018 South American Games, silver at the 2019 Pan American Games and 2014 Central American and Caribbean Games, and bronze at the 2017 World Amateur Championships.

Another 2-time Olympian is Dominican Republic lightweight Lionel de los Santos, who is rated No. 3 by AIBA behind Lazaro Jorge Alvarez (Cuba) and Tsendbaster Erdenebat (Mongolia).  Santos, who was eliminated in the last Olympics in the preliminary round, is already 3-0 as a professional with three first-round knockouts.

Santos, 26, was a silver medalist at the prestigious Pan-American Games in 2019, where he lost to 3-time Pan-Am gold medalist Lazaro Alvarez, the 3-time World amateur champion and 2-time Olympic bronze medalist.

The third Fighter Locker Olympian is Colombian middleweight Jorge Vivas, a 33-year-old who won a silver medal at the 2015 Pan American Games.

“Adding these fighters to the Fighter Locker family was a huge accomplishment,” manager Ryan Roach said.  “These guys are the best of the best in the world.  You’re talking less than one-percent chance of making an Olympic team and two of three of my fighters are going back to the Olympics for the second time.

“After the Olympics, I will quickly transition these fighters into the professional ranks, as long as they are healthy and so forth.  We have four fight dates set for them and representing their homelands proudly.  I am very honored to represent these young men and guide their careers.”

Fighter Locker’s growing stable of gifted boxers include California super flyweight Rocco “So Cal Kid” Santomauro (21-1, 6 KOs), Troy, NY ABF American West super lightweight Ray Jay “The Destroyer” Bermudez (12-0, 9 KOs), Toronto, Canada welterweight West Haven, CT super welterweight Jimmy “Quiet Storm” Williams (17-5-2, 6 KOs), super middleweight “The Amazing” Shawn McCalman (7-0, 4 KOs), U.S. Army super bantamweight Daniel Bailey, Jr. (5-0, 4 KOs), lightweight Leonel de los Santos (2-0, 2 KOs), a 2-time Dominican Republic Olympian, Boston featherweightTroy Anderson, Jr. (1-0, 1 KO), pro-debuting Dominican Republic welterweight Juan Solano, and Salt Lake City, 2016 Brazilian Olympic silver medalist Yuberjen Martinez, Brazilian Olympian Jorge Vivas, Colorado super middleweight Marvin “Too Much” Cordova, Jr. (23-2-1, 12 KOs), West Palm Beach, FL light heavyweight Robert Daniels, Jr. (4-0, 4 KOs),  Utah brothers, super lightweight Ignacio Chairez (8-0-1, 5 KOs) and lightweight Gabriel Chairez (3-0-1, 2 KOs).

INFORMATION:

WEBSITE:  fighterlocker.com, punch4parkinsons.com

FACEBOOK:  /fighterlocker

TWITTER:  @RoachRyan

INSTAGRAM: @RyanRoach82

ABOUT FIGHTER LOCKER: Established in 2019, Fighter Locker is a comprehensive sports agency that manages professional boxers.  Fighter Locker also helps to brand boxers by finding their voice with a 100-percent customized service.  Fighter Locker does not really believe in working models.  It believes in partnership optimization models in motion. 

Fighter Locker uses four creative steps because it believes in “the foundation is everything”: 1. wisely conceived, 2. creatively restrained, 3. Proudly judged, 4. sharply targeted.

boxing, Olympics, USA Boxing

USA Boxing Converts Abandoned Department Store Into National Training Gym for Preparations for Olympic Games Tokyo 2020

Leave a comment

(COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.) – When the boxers of the USA Boxing Olympic Qualification Team arrived in Colorado Springs, Colorado. this week they walked into a new training facility with just over six months left until the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, and even less time to their qualification tournaments. 

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, USA Boxing athletes have not been allowed to train in the national boxing gym at the United States Olympic and Paralympic Training Center (USOPTC) since March 2020 and have had to continue to make adjustments to their training plans, which included training at the French National Training Center in Paris in late 2020.

After being told they would not be allowed to begin 2021 at the USOPTC, the coaching and national office staff had to find a new home to begin the final preparations for the qualification tournaments taking place in May and June. 

“After spending most of 2020 waiting to be allowed entry back into our national gym at the Colorado Springs OPTC, it was time that we took matters into our own hands and established a training space that can properly accommodate our team’s training needs,” said Matt Johnson, USA Boxing High Performance Director.

USA Boxing ended 2020 and the beginning of 2021 moving all equipment, which included four boxing rings, numerous heavy bags and strength and conditioning equipment, from their gym at the USOPTC to an abandoned department store in a mall in Colorado Springs to hold training camps, while housing the boxers and coaching staff at the nearby Hotel Eleganté. 

“We are able to continue to move forward in this COVID environment by applying multi-layer protection protocols, pre-travel testing, mandatory mask wearing, social distancing, regular cleaning, regular rapid antigen testing, daily health surveys and follow up PRC pool testing, as well as provide a top notch training facility in our temporary facility, which we are greatly thankful for John Bushman, owner of Hotel Eleganté and the training facility, to help provide these opportunities to our boxers,” stated Mike McAtee, USA Boxing Executive Director. 

“The training facility and environment we have created has greatly reduced the risk to our boxers and coaches. USA Boxing strives to fulfill our stated mission to our boxers, ‘… (to) inspire the tireless pursuit of Olympic gold and enable our boxers and coaches to achieve sustained competitive excellence…’ in the face of a worldwide pandemic.”

The first training camp of 2021 began Jan. 14 and will run until Feb. 18, before the boxers head to Bulgaria and Spain for international competitions. USA Boxing will hold the final training camp before the America’s Olympic Qualification Tournament at the Chula Vista Elite Athlete Training Center, in Chula Vista, Calif., in another makeshift boxing gym, which held the final training camp of 2020 in November.

INFORMATION: 

www.usaboxing.org 

Twitter: @USABoxing, @USABoxingAlumni 

Instagram: @USABoxing 

Facebook: /USABoxing 

boxing, Olympics, USA Boxing

Houston heavyweight boxer Darius Fulghum puts nursing career on hold to pursue Olympic dream

Leave a comment

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (February 26, 2020) – Amateur boxers often take different routes on their personal journeys and Houston heavyweight Darius Fulghum has put his career outside the ring on hold to pursue his boxing dreams.

Fulghum was a wrestler in high school back in Killeen, Texas.  He started boxing in 2015 and quickly developed a passion for the “Sweet Science,” largely because of it being a one-person sport.  He didn’t need to rely on teammates, preferring to win or lose on his own accord.  Although he was talented enough to be a collegiate wrestler, it would have been too much of a financial strain on his family.

“I had that competitive itch and was pretty good when I first started boxing,” Dariuis said.  “I knew that I could do anything I put my mind to.  I want to redefine boxing.  I’m not a typical boxer who grew up on the streets.  I don’t even like fighting; I’m passive and have never had a street fight.”

The 23-year-old Fulghum currently has his sights firmly set on representing his country in Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.  Pro boxing will follow but, for now, he’s training hard to qualify to compete in the Olympics by placing among the top three finishers at the America’s Qualification Tournament, March 26-April 3, in Buenos Aires, Argentina. There will also be another “Last Chance” opportunity, if needed, at the World Qualifier, May 13-14, in Paris, where the top three there will also qualify for the Olympics.

“It’s so hard to not think about the Olympics all the time,” he admits.  “I try to not think about it too much, but it is on my mind because I’ve dreamed of being an Olympian and I’m so close right now.  I’ve made the sacrifices to be an Olympian and then I’ll be an Olympian the rest of my life.  

“I listen to my coaches.  In the heat of the moment, when things are most stressful, I feel like the underdog and I perform up to the absolute moment.  It was do-or-die at Olympic Trials.  I just refuse to lose.”

Fulgham certainly responded to the pressure of the trials in a positive fashion, upsetting pre-trials favorite Adrian Tillman in the opening round, and then rolling through opponents until he secured the title.

“People didn’t know me,” Fulgham explained.  “I was the underdog because I didn’t compete in many tournaments because I was in (nursing) school. My finals were always in December (same time as USA Nationals).  I did have a break in my schedule in 2018, when I won a gold medal at the National Golden Gloves Tournament.  It’s just the way my schedule worked out.  So, I hadn’t fought in many tournaments, but I was able to sneak in when it mattered most.”

Fulghum recently competed in his first international tournament at the prestigious Strandja Tournament in Bulgaria, winning one of two matches.  The experience, though, was priceless, possibly career changing in terms of preparing for the Olympics.

“Not only was it my first international tournament,” he noted, “it was the first time I had boxed without headgear (as will be the case in the Olympics), and I fought guys from foreign countries with different styles.  It was a great experience because now I won’t be going blind into the Olympic Qualifier.”

Members of the USA Boxing Olympic Qualification Team, like Fulghum, are on break before returning for training with his teammates at the United States Olympic and Paralympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.

“I reported there for the first time this past January 2nd and I love it,” Fulghum noted.  “Every athlete dreams of training with top athletes where there are no distractions and top coaches.  I wake up, eat, sleep, train and do that all over again the next day.  That’s my schedule.”

Fulghum earned his nursing degree last May, but right now and for the immediate future he’s fully concentrating on boxing.

“I put education first and got my degree,” Fulgham concluded.  “I’ll always have nursing after boxing.  But I dreamed of going to the Olympics all through school.  I put boxing on hold and now I’ve put nursing to the side so I can put my all into boxing.  I didn’t want to juggle nursing and boxing.  I couldn’t be the best at either that way. 

“I do plan to turn pro because I love boxing so much.  I need to box when I’m young.  I’ll go as far as I can go in boxing and I’ll always having nursing.”

Darius Fulgham has taken a circuitous route in life from nursing to boxing.  It’ll be worth it, though, if he makes it to Tokyo as part of Team USA for the 2020 Olympics.

INFORMATION:

www.usaboxing.org

Twitter: @USABoxing

Instagram: @USABoxing

Facebook: /USABoxing

ABOUT USA BOXING:  To promote and grow Olympic-style amateur boxing in the United States and to inspire the tireless pursuit of Olympic gold and enable athletes and coaches to achieve sustained competitive excellence. Additionally, USA Boxing endeavors to teach all participants the character, confidence and focus they need to become resilient and diverse champions, both in and out of the ring. USA Boxing is one team, one nation, going for gold!

boxing, Olympics, USA Boxing

USA Boxing featherweight Andrea Medina closing in on 2020 Olympic spot in Tokyo

Leave a comment

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (February 10, 2020) – Coming off consecutive runner-up finishes in major tournaments, USA Boxing featherweight Andrea Medina is within one tournament of representing her country in the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.

In December, the 20-year-old Medina lost a split decision to Lupe Gutierrez at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Boxing, and 4-1 to Iulia Tsyplakova (Ukraine) last month at the Strandja Tournament in Bulgaria.  The Chula Vista, California boxer was recently named to USA Boxing’s Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 Boxing Qualification Team.

“Placing second at the trials only made me more eager to get that Olympic Qualification spot,” Medina said.  “I just wanted to show USA Boxing that I was the one to represent at 57 kilograms.  I am only going to get better and I cannot wait to show the world everything that I got.

“For it (Strandja) being my first ever international tournament, I was very proud of how far I got in the tournament and getting that silver medal.  I was very happy with all my performances and I am excited to get back to work on things I need to improve on.  Aside from all that, going to a different country was awesome and I can’t wait to travel more doing what I love the most.”

Medina and her Team USA stablemates are currently training in Colorado Springs at the state-of-the-art United States Olympic and Paralympic Training Center.  To qualify for participation in this year’s Olympic Games, Medina needs to finish among the top three in the 57-kilogram (125 lbs.) division at the America’s Qualification Tournament, March 26-April 3, in Buenos Aires, Argentina.  One final opportunity at the World Qualifier in Paris, France, in which she could qualify for the Olympics by placing among the top five.

“It means the world to me to be on the USA Boxing Olympic Qualification Team,” Medina added.  “It is everything I have been working for since I started competing at eight years old and I cannot believe the Olympic Games are only in a few months.  Making history in San Diego by being the first person to make the Olympic Team for boxing is a big deal for my family, my city and myself.  I cannot express how excited I am to have come this far, but there is still so much to do, and I am ready.

“I feel that I work better under pressure and I truly believe that I will qualify for Tokyo, whether it be in Argentina or France, but my main goal, right now, is to train hard to get that gold in Argentina.”

Medina believes her major strength inside the ring is her ability to adjust during a fight.  She prefers fighting on the outside, but she can brawl if needed, because she enjoys throwing a lot of power punches.

Medina also realizes that she’s in a prime place regarding the rising popularity of female boxing, following in the USA Boxing footsteps of two-time Olympic gold medalist Claressa Shields and Olympic bronze medalist Marlen Esparza, along with past USA Olympians such as Queen Underwood and Mikaela Mayer.

“Female boxing is only going to get bigger,” Medina predicted.  “Being a female fighter today means a lot to me, because I have been doing this for 15 years now, and seeing it grow year after year only shows how strong females are and what we can accomplish.  I predict that, in the future, boxing will not be seen as a man’s sport, but will be neutral for both men and women.”

Competing at the Olympics has been a life-long dream for Medina, but she also has plans for her immediate future.

“Reaching the Olympics has been my main goal throughout my boxing career,” Andrea remarked, “so now that it is so close makes me want to work even harder.  Other goals of mine are to graduate from college and get my own condominium, which I will do after all this is over.

“I plan on turning pro after the Olympics, most likely at the beginning or middle of 2021, so I can finish school and give my body some rest and recovery.”

Andrea Medina is so close to being an Olympian and everything associated with that accomplishment that she can practically reach out and feel it.  Just one more step, whether in Buenos Aires or Paris, and it’ll be mission accomplished for her.

INFORMATION:

www.usaboxing.org

Twitter: @USABoxing

Instagram: @USABoxing

Facebook: /USABoxing

ABOUT USA BOXING:  To promote and grow Olympic-style amateur boxing in the United States and to inspire the tireless pursuit of Olympic gold and enable athletes and coaches to achieve sustained competitive excellence. Additionally, USA Boxing endeavors to teach all participants the character, confidence and focus they need to become resilient and diverse champions, both in and out of the ring. USA Boxing is one team, one nation, going for gold!