Latest news with #U.S.NationalChampionships
Forbes
04-04-2025
- Sport
- Forbes
Is Boxer Richard Torrez Jr. The Next Great American Heavyweight?
It's been a long time — actually a loooong time — since American fighters dominated boxing's heavyweight division. Go back almost 30 years to the mid-1990s when Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield and Riddick Bowe alternated their kingly position atop boxing's most glamorous weight class. But that was so many moons ago. For the past three decades, the non-U.S. heavyweights have ruled — Lennox Lewis (England), Vladimir Klitschko (Ukraine), Anthony Joshua (England) and Oleksandr Usyk (Ukraine). A couple Americans — Andy Ruiz and Deontay Wilder — provided nationalistic hope (and some U.S.A. chants) but their legacies mostly fizzled out. Ruiz lost control of his conditioning after his stunning KO of Joshua, and Wilder, once the scariest puncher in the game, ultimately got solved — and destroyed — courtesy of Britain's Tyson Fury. But, as Yoda once said, there is another, and that could be Richard Torrez Jr., a third-generation boxer from Tulare, Calif. who won silver at the 2020 Olympics and is a two-time U.S. National Championships gold medalist. Torrez — a southpaw with dynamite in both hands — has built a sparking 12-0 record with 11 KOs, with most of those wins coming against second-tier or lower competition. On Saturday, Torrez is leveling up to face Italy's Guido Vianello, whose prospect pedigree has faded in recent years but still is considered the biggest challenge of the American's career. The fight will take place in Las Vegas and air on ESPN+ in the U.S. Vianello (13-2-1, 11 KOs) is the perfect test for Torrez. The Italian fighter is a crafty boxer who can swat and is riding high after obliterating fearsome puncher Arslanbek Makhmudov in his most recent fight last August. Vianello's most noteworthy performance actually occurred in a split-decision loss to the hulking Efe Ajagba. It was in that bout that Vianello showcased serious skills and scrappiness. The Torrez-Vianello bout offers a compelling contrast in styles. Torrez has a little Mike Tyson in him — a stocky 6-foot-2 steamroller who bullies his way inside with rib-crunching hooks. Here he is in action: Meanwhile, the 6-foot-6 Vianello snaps a long jab and searches for angles to land a potent right hand. He will look to keep Torrez on the outside while also emptying his gas tank. Torrez has fought beyond five rounds just once during his career while Vianello has gone to round seven and beyond in five of his last six fights and stopped Makhmudov in round eight. Torrez, who scored dominant wins over unbeaten Brandon Moore and fringe prospect Isaac Munoz, knows Vianello is no stepping-stone. 'This is something I've been working toward for a long time,' Torrez told legendary boxing scribe Dan Rafael. 'I want to prove that I'm the best heavyweight out there and show what American heavyweights are made of. When they offered me Guido, I didn't hesitate. I'm ready to go.' And if Torrez beats Vianello in sensational fashion, then the buzz may start — that Torrez may just be the next great American heavyweight (finally).
Yahoo
31-01-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Metro Atlanta law and figure skating communities remember plane crash victims
International and national figure skating judge John Millier said he first heard about the deadly collision between an American Airlines jet and a Blackhawk helicopter over Washington, DC over the radio, then he rushed home and watched the coverage on television. Hours later he said a friend sent him a list of the victims. 'As soon as they said it was a plane coming in out of Wichita, I knew,' Millier said. 'The first three people on that list were people I knew very well, so it hit hard.' Millier told Chanel 2's Audrey Washington that he was with the group of elite figure skaters in Wichita for the U.S. National Championships. Those skaters, their parents, and coaches, all boarded the ill-fated American Airlines flight on Wednesday night. 'They were very young kids with so much talent,' Millier said. RELATED STORIES: What to know about the NTSB and the investigation into the DC plane crash PHOTOS: Who are the victims of the D.C. helicopter-plane crash? American Airlines pilot killed in DC plane crash identified as Georgia man Soldier on Army helicopter in deadly DC crash graduated from Gwinnett County high school Millier said the figure skating community is heartbroken. 'It's just a huge loss for the community. We lost our entire world team on a plane crash in 1961. That was devastating,' Millier added. James L. Walker Jr. is a prominent Atlanta attorney and teaches at Howard University in D.C. He is working to get a lecture hall or a program named after Professor Kiah Duggins, the Harvard-educated, civil rights attorney. Duggins was set to join the faculty at Howard University. She along with more than 65 people died in the crash. 'I was devastated that she was on it,' Walker said. 'She was the future. She clearly was the future of the civil rights division of the school.' As the NTSB investigation into what caused the crash continues, people are focused on remembering and honoring those whose lives ended so tragically. 'The skating community is so tight and we're all grieving together,' Millier said.
