U.S. boxer collapses and is out of competition

BEIJING -- Bantamweight Gary Russell Jr. is out of the boxing competition after collapsing Thursday night during a workout in a last-ditch effort to make the 119-pound weight limit ahead of today’s seeding draw.

Russell, 20, of Capitol Heights, Md., is a two-time national champion and was considered a likely contender for gold in Beijing. He lost consciousness in his dorm room after becoming dehydrated.

A replacement athlete for that weight class cannot be named, according to the rules of the International Amateur Boxing Federation.

“I’m extremely disappointed,” Russell said in a statement released by the United States Olympic Committee. “Competing in the Olympic Games has always been one of my dreams, and I wish I would have been able to represent my country alongside my teammates.”

All 286 boxers competing here were required to make weight Friday morning in order to be entered into the draw.

-- Kevin Baxter