(COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO.) – The 2012 USA Boxing National Championships will return to a familiar city in 2012, but the event will take place in a new and unique venue for the all-important 2012 edition. Fort Carson will host the annual event with the full week of action, February 27-March 3, taking place on base at the Special Events Center.
The annual tournament will be a critical piece of the qualification process for male athletes for the 2012 Olympic Games in the seven non-qualified weight divisions, with the event’s champions advancing on to the second and final international Olympic qualifier in Brazil in May.
“The 2012 USA Boxing National Championships will be an unprecedented week of Olympic-style boxing action with our top athletes battling it out for berths in both the Olympic Games and World Championships,” USA Boxing Executive Director Anthony Bartkowski said. “We look forward to working with the tremendous Fort Carson staff to put on an outstanding event that both participants and spectators will enjoy.”
While the USA Boxing National Championships have been held in the Colorado Springs area several times in the past, the move to Fort Carson will provide a new look and feel for the nation’s premier amateur boxing event.
"Fort Carson is honored to host the 2012 USA Boxing National Championships in February,” said Fort Carson Garrison Commander Col. Robert F. McLaughlin. “We enjoy an exceptional relationship with our community and we are delighted to support local and national sporting communities."
The seven non-qualified men’s weight classes are light flyweight, lightweight, light welterweight, middleweight, light heavyweight, heavyweight and super heavyweight. The 2012 USA Boxing National Champions in those seven weight divisions will each have an opportunity to qualify for London in May’s Americas Qualifying Tournament. Flyweight Rau’shee Warren (Cincinnati, Ohio), bantamweight Joseph Diaz, Jr. (S. El Monte, Calif.), and welterweight Errol Spence (Desoto, Texas) each qualified their weight divisions at the 2011 World Championships.
While the three women vying for berths in London will be determined at the first-ever U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Women, February 13-19; the 2012 USA Boxing National Champions in the seven women’s non-Olympic weight classes will all earn berths in the 2012 Women’s World Championships.
With the removal of the qualifying process and the high stakes for the champions; the number of participants is expected to break previous records. Preliminary competition is scheduled to begin on February 27 with action taking place daily through March 3. Championship night action will feature final round bouts in the seven unqualified men's weight classes and seven non-Olympic women’s divisions.
Admission for the preliminaries, semifinal rounds and women’s non-Olympic and men’s qualified weight division finals will be free of charge. Championship night general admission tickets are only $12.50 in advance (before February 28) or for any spectators with a valid USOC or NGB ID card or military/DoD identification. General admission tickets will be $20 after February 28 and can be purchased via Tempo Tickets at http://www.tempotickets.com/tempotickets/site/pages/event.php?e=1723&c=1.
2012 USA Boxing National Championships tickets are on sale now. Preferred and VIP table seating is available by contacting Rob Howe at USA Boxing at (719) 866-2307.
Registration for the 2012 USA Boxing National Championships is currently underway and a list of competitors will be released in early February.
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).
