Olympians Are Down for the Count

From Floyd Patterson (1952) to Muhammad Ali (as Cassius Clay in 1960), from Joe Frazier (1964) to George Foreman (1968), from Sugar Ray Leonard (1976) to Oscar De La Hoya (1992), Olympic boxing champions have been featured on television and enshrined in the national consciousness almost from the day they stood on the medals stand clutching their precious prizes.

But it is not so easy to name a U.S. boxer, medal winner or otherwise, who took part in the recently-concluded Olympics.

If these were the Forgotten Olympics, then boxing was among the most forgotten of all the sports in the United States.

“When Ray Leonard won his gold, he was fighting in prime time,” promoter Bob Arum said. “Everybody immediately knew what Ali and Foreman looked like. Does anybody out there know what any member of this team looks like?”

The biggest reason for the boxers’ lack of attention is obvious. For the first time since 1948, the United States did not win a gold medal in boxing. It was the low point in a trend stretching over the past decade. After winning a dozen boxing golds in the previous two Olympics, Americans have won a total of two in the last three Games--De La Hoya in 1992 and David Reid in 1996.

Two U.S. boxers--featherweight Ricardo Juarez and light welterweight Ricardo Williams--reached the finals this year only to lose, both via controversial decisions.

After winning 68 straight matches, Juarez was beaten by Bekzat Sattarkhanov of Kazakhstan. U.S. officials charged after the match that Sattarkhanov wasn’t penalized for excessive holding by referee Stanislav Kirsanov, a Russian.

After Williams was beaten by Mahamakadyz Abdullaev of Uzbekistan, Norm Blake, CEO of the U.S. Olympic Committee, issued a statement objecting to the decision.

There was no controversy about the elimination of the best-known U.S. fighter heading into the Sydney competition, heavyweight Michael Bennett. He was defeated soundly in a quarterfinal match by Cuban Felix Savon.

The defeats themselves, controversial or not, were serious blows to the fighters in terms of fame back home. But it was NBC who delivered the knockout punch by showing little boxing.

NBC officials say they no longer feature Olympic boxing because it has dropped drastically in popularity in recent Games. Boxing officials claim it has dropped because television largely ignores it.

“I’m concerned because Olympic boxing is never on television,” Arum said. “Because a lot of our best kids don’t see Olympic boxing, they no longer think about it as much as a way to break in. They think more about turning pro.”

Arum, who has vigorously pursued Olympians such as De La Hoya in the past, didn’t go to Sydney.

Disgust with the scoring system has gotten so bad that there are serious rumblings about taking boxing out of the Olympics altogether.

It’s not all bleak for the U.S. silver medalists in boxing. Promoter Shelly Finkel is discussing a seven-figure contract with Juarez. Williams is talking to James Prince, who has been handling Floyd Mayweather.

Juarez and Williams could still become stars. Both Mayweather and Fernando Vargas, who fell short of Olympic gold in 1996, have gone on to high-profile professional careers.

But, for now, the class of 2000 has sunk into anonymity.