ORLANDO, Fla. — Orlando will be representing Omari Jones in Paris this summer, where he will be on the biggest stage at the 2024 Summer Olympics. The Edgewater High School graduate has qualified for Team USA boxing.
Jones' road to the Olympics was a long one.
In March, he won four consecutive games and achieved his goal of qualifying for the Olympics. The match that clinched his golden ticket was a 4-1 decision against Nishant Dev in the 71 kg category for the 2024 Olympic World Qualification Tournament in Busto Arsizio, Italy.
“As you can see, my last game was played here,” he said, pointing to the bandage under his eye. “But I had to go to places I've never been in the ring before. I had to dig deep and make sure I didn't leave without getting the golden ticket.”
“It's a match for Olympic qualification, but we have to treat it like a different match,” he added. “You can't get too overwhelmed. So I just stayed calm. That's what got me the golden ticket.”
The Golden Ticket is a small piece of paper designed to look like an airplane boarding pass. The paper symbolizes the battle it took to get to this moment.
“It sounds like everything I dreamed of as a kid and everything I've worked for,” Jones said. “Officially, they are called Olympians.”
Jones reflected on the moment, repeatedly watching the video of him in the ring raising his hands in victory.
“It was just an outlet for all the pressure, all the suffering, all the training, everything I've been through,” he said. “I just had to let it out. I got to get my feelings out on the big screen and I'm so glad the job is done. But it's not over yet.”
Jones said it has always been important to him to not only represent his country with pride, but his hometown of Orlando.
“It actually means a lot for the kids to look up to me and for Orlando to say, 'You're the next hope, the next great thing,'” Jones said. Ta. He said. “So my goal is to not think too much, stay humble and just go to Paris and bring home the gold medal.”
Jones will be one of 13 boxers representing Team USA this summer in an effort to accomplish what U.S. male boxers have not been able to accomplish for 20 years: a medal at the Olympics. At 21 years old, Jones said he's ready to show the world what he's worked for.
“I still can't believe it. But like I said, I know how much work I've put in to get to this point, so while I say it's shocking, it's definitely not surprising. It doesn't matter, because this is my job,'' Jones said. “Being called an Olympian is for my name and for me.”
Jones will split his time between his home in Orlando and training in Colorado Springs, Colorado, before Team USA departs for Paris for the 2024 Summer Olympics.
