Rio Olympics: Claressa Shields, 21, is first U.S. boxer to win back-to-back golds
Shields is already in the conversation for greatest female boxer ever
•
1 min read
Claressa Shields has done the unprecedented, and in the process, established her name as one of the greatest -- maybe the greatest -- female boxers in history.
The 21-year-old from Flint, Mich., defended her gold medal on Sunday afternoon, winning by unanimous decision over Nouchka Fontijn in the women's middlewight class (69-75kg). With this win, combined with her gold from the 2012 London Games, Shields becomes the first American boxer in history to win consecutive Olympic gold medals.
"I wanted to let it be known that I'm not just a great female boxer but I'm one of the great boxers to ever live," Shields said on NBC Sports Network after her win. "I'm the first American to be a two-time gold medalist, oh my God."
A look of elation and disbelief came over Shields toward the end of the interview. She tagged it by exclaiming, "Thank you, Jesus!"
Shields was dominant yet patient. After an unusually inconsistent first round, Shields was in command the rest of the way. She waited on her spots, hit her openings and made a lot of big connections.Women's Olympic boxing matches are four two-minute rounds. That's it. The fight took less than 15 minutes from start to finish, and Shields was fresh.
"It was just to be smart, use my jab and land the right hand when I could," Shields said of her strategy.
The only other boxer in American history to win two golds? Oliver Kirk, and he won those gold sat the same Olympics, in 1904. But Shields defends her title and makes history in the process.
With the win, Shields will become one of the biggest names in boxing. Many consider her the best female boxer in the world. What's next? Shields is expected to go pro and can be the face of women's boxing. She's got the charisma for it. And she's now dominated women's boxing for more than four years. She's won a couple of world championships.
Her name is forever among the American greats because of this feat. But Shields' future remains very bright. For as good as she's been so far, the pinnacle of her career is likely still to come.
