Team USA: Olympic Postmortem

By Cliff Rold

One gold.

One silver.

One bronze.

It’s one medal more than US boxers had in 2012 and this time, unlike last, the men got in on the action. It was Olympic boxing so there was more than a fair share of controversies for fighters from around the world. Like the professional world of pugilism, boxing has a hard time getting out of its own way.

It’s nothing new.

It doesn’t mean it doesn’t get old.

This time it was a shame because, between the ropes, the product was so clearly improved. The removal of head gear on the men’s side, and introduction of rounds-based rather than punch count scoring, made for better fights more often.

Boxing should be one of the easiest sells for television viewers. The human stories are visceral. The individuals are easily identifiable. Rules changes over the last two decades didn’t just leave the sport with its ever-present allegations of corruption. It sucked away entertainment value.

Fights that end with controversy over who won get worse when they didn’t have you one the edge of your seat before the decision came in. Better entertainment was at least a step in the right direction.

Team USA also showed some signs of moving in the right direction. New direction at USA Boxing showed. While this team failed to qualify anyone above the men’s middleweight limit, the kids we sent over made a solid showing. It’s still a long way to go before we can, as we once did, compete regularly with the amateur powers of the world. Nations like Uzbekistan and Cuba are more than a step ahead right now.

This was something Team USA can build on with an eye towards 2020. The parting shots from the Olympics gave us two quality battlers to invest in.

Over the last two days of Olympic competition last weekend, we saw what Wide World of Sports once hailed as ‘the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.’

The thrill was had in the second consecutive gold medal (to go with two amateur world championships in between) for women’s middleweight Claresa Shields. Only 21 years old, she can walk away knowing that relative to her division she’s had as good an amateur career as any fighter could have.

The agony was in the moments after bantamweight Shakur Stevenson fell short in his quest for gold. There was no controversy in this one. With a minute to go in a fight that was all locked up going into the third and final round, Stevenson simply got outhustled by a more savvy and experienced opponent. His interview after the fight broke down into sobs.

Stevenson’s heart was broken and it was hard not to feel the tug at home.

Someday soon, Stevenson’s fistic life will enter its next dimension. He will be part of the paid ranks in pursuit of wealth and titles. Fans will decide whether they root for him or don’t. Social media will do what it does, choosing sides and breaking down every statement, opponent choice, style approach, and promotional deal at a micro level.

For American fans, let’s hope there can be at least some honeymoon period where we remember the kid who wanted so badly to win that gold medal. He represented his country honorably and gave his best before there were big checks on the line.

The same can be said for all his teammates. Team USA 2016 reminded that we can still be plenty competitive with the best in the amateur boxing world. Let’s hope this will be remembered as a turning point year on the road to more medal glory in the future.

Looking ahead, there is plenty to be optimistic about in the pro game. Our best amateur, Shields, faces an uphill battle. Women’s boxing has a small place in the US market. She has as good a chance as anyone to change that but will she stay a boxer? Some readers and pundits have suggested MMA as an alternative route for her. It’s an intriguing option with a much more established and steady market already in place.

So far, Shields has said that MMA is not the path she has in mind. Dollar signs can change that. Hers will be a fascinating story to watch unfold. So too will the story of women’s lightweight Mikaela Mayer. Mayer, should she turn pro, will do so in a deeper professional pool of talent than middleweight and above offers right now.

For both, the market that doesn’t exist fully right now is there to be created.

Stevenson is going to get chances and already multiple promotional outfits have expressed interest. How high his ceiling will be could depend on how high his body goes on the scale. He’s got the height, but will his frame carry successfully into the divisions where the most money awaits? He’s lighter than Floyd Mayweather was as an amateur and it took Floyd almost a decade to make his way from Jr. lightweight to welterweight where “Money” made the most of his moniker.

Bronze medalist Nico Hernandez, fighting at the amateur light flyweight limit, will turn professional at an interesting time. There is renewed interest in the flyweight area of the scale due to the prominence of Roman Gonzalez. Can Hernandez evolve fast enough to ride that wave and keep interest there? He’s already exceeded expectations in Rio.

Of those who did not medal, lightweight Carlos Balderas and light welterweight Gary Antuanne Russell both made the quarterfinals and showed real promise. Both have the size for a legitimate moneyed area of the scale around welterweight. They are worthwhile investments.

And then there is middleweight Charles Conwell and flyweight Antonio Vargas. The latter exited in his first fight but showed talent. Conwell is young and still obviously a work in progress. We didn’t see enough of him to have a strong feeling on what is to come. Vargas, eliminated in the round of sixteen, won the Pan Am Games and, like Hernandez, turns pro at a time when interesting things are happening low on the scale.

Both will have their chances.

It’s something to look forward to after one last tip of the cap to all the competing members of Team USA in 2016.    

Cliff Rold is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene and a member of the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board and the Boxing Writers Association of America.  He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com