16 year old Claressa Shields dominated another more experienced fighter in Tuesday's Olympic women's boxing trials. Shields is now a step closer to her goal of representing the United States at the London Olympics this summer.
ESPN reports:
Claressa Shields kept up her surprising charge through the middleweight bracket with a 31-12 victory over Andrecia Wasson. The impressive 16-year-old built on her upset of Franchon Crews, the top American 165-pounder, a day earlier.
Shields has seized the amateur boxing world's attention over the past two days. The high-school junior from Flint, Mich., is the new middleweight favorite to advance to the world championships in China in May, when the Americans must finish in the top eight to qualify for the first Olympic women's boxing tournament in London.
Even after another one-sided win, Shields' face only brightened when her coach, Jason Crutchfield, gave her a "B-plus" grade for her thrashing of Wasson, a fellow Michigan native. Shields is the youngest fighter in the field, and she only began fighting at the amateur sport's top level over the past year.
"I came here to win, not to lose once in a double-elimination tournament and then make up for it," Shields said. "I want to win every day, and that's what I've been doing. I still haven't been able to stop my opponents yet, and that's really aggravating me. She's a bum. That's why I wanted to stop her."
