Featured Columnist IVJuly 26, 2024
Cooper Neill/Getty Images for Netflix
Mike Tyson is officially fired up for the Olympics.
With Friday’s Opening Ceremonies approaching, the boxing legend took to social media and said he is excited to watch Team USA attempt to capture the gold during the boxing competitions:
While Tyson himself never fought in the Olympics, he did win back-to-back gold medals in the Junior Olympics in 1981 and 1982. He then went on to make his professional debut in 1985 and became one of the most memorable boxers in the history of the sport.
There may not be someone as famous as Tyson in the boxing competitions of the Paris Games, but the sport will be under the spotlight.
The first boxing events begin Saturday and run through Aug. 10, when the women’s 75kg final and men’s 75kg final take place. There are eight weight classes on the men’s side and five on the women’s side with a total of 248 boxers.
Josh Peter of USA Today highlighted Jahmal Harvey, Joshua Edwards and Jennifer Lozano as the biggest American boxing stars set to compete in the Olympics, so Tyson will surely want to keep an eye on them if he wants to see the Red, White and Blue potentially bring home the gold.
Harvey (featherweight) and Edwards (super heavyweight) each won gold medals at the 2023 Pan American Games, while Lozano (flyweight) captured silver.
As for Tyson, he will once again be in the ring on Nov. 15 when he faces Jake Paul.
