Sports

Gary Russell Jr. was the United States’ best chance to grab hold of the gold medal in boxing. Things were looking good for him until he collapsed while he was trying to make his goal weight in Beijing today. His teammate Luis Yanez found Russell after he was trying to shed off two pounds to reach the weight limit of 119 pounds.

Doctors stated that he was not able to weigh in and he will no longer be able to compete in the Olympics. All eyes will quickly turn to controversial USA Boxing coach Dan Campbell, as nothing says bad coaching quite like poor weight management.

Campbell required the entire U.S. team, chosen last August, to move to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs and follow his training regime. In boxing, much like wrestling, judo and other combat sports, the athletes will continue to train with their coaches and visit the OTC for camps. Some athletes do train there full-time, but it is rarely required for an athlete for pick up and move away for a year, leaving their coaches and training partners. Some of the boxers aired their unhappiness with the program publicly, with Saddam Ali talking about it on a radio show, and Yanez saying that the fighters don’t like Campbell.

The U.S. has a strong, if small, boxing contingent, and they will likely come home with some hardware. If this happens, Campbell will be credited as a genius, while Gary Russell Jr. will only be able to watch from ringside.