There are 6 Gary Russells rooting for Olympian Gary Russell (in his own family)
RIO DE JANEIRO – Gary Antuanne Russell kind of feels like he’s been here before, even though the 20-year-old American light welterweight boxer is a first-time Olympian.
His older brother, Gary Allen Russell Jr., was a member of the 2008 U.S. team in Beijing. The speedy Russell Jr., a bantamweight, was a medal favorite, but didn’t compete when he passed out trying to cut weight and was unable to weigh-in.
Gary Antuanne, who is one of six sons of Gary Allen Russell Sr. with the first name, Gary, has taken in all of his brothers’ experiences.
He won the national Golden Gloves title in 2014 to become the fourth member in his family to win one.
He’s looking to take it a step further by winning an Olympic medal, though he admits that being the youngest sibling has helped him.
“It’s a luxury to have so many brothers who do this, too, and who are so good at it,” he said. “I’ve been able to look at them and see what they do, what works and see what doesn’t work, and bring that to myself.”
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The Russell name has been a familiar one in boxing over the last decade, and not just because most of them are named Gary.
Russell Sr., who got all of his sons into boxing at a young age in Capitol Heights, Md., was a fighter of some note until he injured a knee when he was shot during a hunting accident.
He got into boxing in the first place by watching ABC’s popular sports anthology show, “Wide World of Sports,” which broadcast many major fights, including several Muhammad Ali bouts.
Russell Sr. introduced his sons to boxing as a means for them to learn discipline and to keep them out of trouble in the inner city.
They fell in love with it just like their father, and dedicated themselves to the game.
“There aren’t a lot of good things happening for African-American kids on the streets in the inner city,” Gary Sr. said. “My kids are good kids. They’re mischievous and what not, but they avoid that kind of negative atmosphere, and I think it’s because of what boxing gave them.”
Gary Allen Russell Jr. is reputed to have the fastest hands in boxing. He’s 27-1 as a pro and holds the WBC featherweight title. He was beaten by two-time Olympic gold medalist Vasyl Lomachenko in his first bid for a featherweight title in 2014.
Lomachenko won a majority decision, winning 116-112 on two scorecards and drawing 114-114 on the third. Russell rebounded nine months later when he knocked out power-punching Jhonny Gonzalez in the fourth round of a March 28, 2015, bout.
Gary Jr. won the national Golden Gloves, as did Gary Allen III and Gary Antonio.
“I take pride in their success,” Gary Sr. said. “But I take pride in all of their achievements. I’ve given them the path and I think I’ve taught them as boxers, but they deserve the credit for learning and working hard and doing it themselves.”
Gary Antuanne, who was his high school class’ valedictorian, has used his family’s experiences to win the Olympic trials and earn his spot on the team in Rio.
There is pressure to win given his pedigree, but he’s confident of the preparation he’s made.
“I feel like I’m following in good footsteps,” Gary Antuanne said. “My brother and I talk every night, every second of every day. That’s a unit, me, my brother, my father, etc. We put our heads together on how we’re going to achieve these events and accomplish, conquer and execute.
“There’s only one way to do it. You have to win back-to-back all the way up to the championship night. You can’t lose anymore. I laid it all on the line. The job isn’t done here or done yet, I’ve got to keep pushing.”
Boxing competition begins on Sunday, but the light welterweights don’t begin until Aug. 10.
Gary Antuanne will have plenty of time to acclimate and be prepared in what historically has been a deep division that’s been dominated by Cubans.
No American male has won a gold medal in boxing since Andre Ward won the light heavyweight title in Athens in 2004. Gary Russell hopes to end that drought, and he’ll have plenty of other people named Gary Russell who will be cheering him on.
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