The United States Olympic Boxing Team will be holding their final open training session at 11 a.m. on Friday, July 11 at the legendary Gleason’s Gym in Brooklyn, N.Y. The eight-member squad, which is ranked number two in the world, will make a final swing through New York, July 10-12, before departing for Beijing on July 21..
On hand for the training session will be 2007 World Champion and two-time Olympian, flyweight Rau’shee Warren (Cincinnati, Ohio). Warren is the first U.S. boxer since 1976 to compete in two Olympic Games, having boxed at the light flyweight division as a 17-year-old in 2004. He will be joined by fellow World Champion, welterweight Demetrius Andrade (Providence, R.I.) as they prepare for the Olympic Games as the favorites in their respective weight divisions.
2005 World Championships bronze medalist and two-time national champion Gary Russell, Jr. (Capitol Heights, Md.) will show off the speed and power that earned him an Olympic berth as he trains at Gleason’s. 2007 Featherweight National Champion Raynell Williams (Cleveland, Ohio) will be accompanied by fellow national champions, light welterweight Javier Molina (Commerce, Calif.) and heavyweight Deontay Wilder (Tuscaloosa, Ala.). Molina is the youngest member of the United States Olympic Team at only 18-years-old, but his youth hasn’t stopped him from reaching the pinnacle of his sport. Wilder earned a berth on the Olympic Team with less than 25 bouts and two years experience in boxing, and the 22-year-old receives constant inspiration from his daughter, Naiyea, who suffers from Spina Bifida.
Middleweight Shawn Estrada (E. Los Angeles, Calif.) was the final U.S. boxer to qualify for the Olympic Games, winning a gold medal at the final Americas Qualifier in April in Guatemala. The eldest member of the team at 22, Estrada boxes for his uncle and father who encouraged him to take up the sport as a child.
The open training session will include every element of a boxing workout, including heavy and speed bag work, shadowboxing, mitts and jump ropes. It will be the last training session open to the media before the team departs for Beijing on July 21.
Event Details
WHAT: United States Olympic Boxing Team Open Training Session
WHEN: Thursday, July 10 at 11 a.m.
WHERE: Gleason’s Gym, 77 Front Street, Brooklyn, N.Y., 11201
All athletes and coaches will have media availability at the completion of the training session.
USA Boxing, as the national governing body for Olympic-style boxing, is the United States’ member organization of the International Amateur Boxing Association (AIBA) and a member of the United States Olympic Committee (USOC).