Twenty years ago, Andre Ward defeated Magomed Alipugadjiev, 20-13, to win the gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. The Bay Area native turned professional later that year and ended his 13-year career with consecutive wins over unified light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev. Ward hasn't fought professionally since 2017, and no American man has won an Olympic gold medal in boxing since 2004. This year, Washington DC's Jamal Harvey is hoping to end Team USA's drought.
“That was my goal, that was my dream, that's what I've always wanted,” Harvey told 7News Sports Director Scott Abraham.
“It's just a happy moment. I'm very proud of myself, but at the same time, [have] And to add something to that, Olympic gold medalist Jamal Harvey.”
Harvey is not your average amateur boxer. At 21, he didn't pick up gloves until he was a teenager — late by boxing standards. But he developed quickly, training with the U.S. team at age 18 and winning a gold medal at the 2023 Pan American Games. Now he's looking to etch his name in history alongside other boxing greats from Maryland, including Sugar Ray Leonard and Gervonta Tank Davis. To do that, he'll have to accomplish something extraordinary, like becoming the first American man to win a gold medal in boxing since 2004.
Harvey will be joining his teammates in Paris, France, as the boxing competition at the 2024 Summer Olympics begins on Saturday, July 27.
