Page 12 Portland Observer, November 24, 1982
Amateur boxing U.S.A
The U.S. amateur boxing team
faces several problems as it attempts
to supercede Cuba and the U.S.S.R.
to win the O lym pic Games. Cuba
won the 1982 W orld Cham pion
ships, with the U.S. edging the So
viet Union fo r second place. But
Cuba defeated the U.S. twice this
year 11-1 and 8-4 and won the North
American championships using its
second team.
U.S. Coach Pat N appi, who
coached the 1976 and the 1980
Olympic teams, predicts that the
Cuban team w ill soon begin to de
scend, giving the U.S.A a shot at the
top spot. He said age and accumula
tive experience are starting to show
their effects on the team that had
three gold medals in the 1976 Olym
pics and six in 1980.
The U.S. team has been building
since the 1976 Olympics in Montreal
when it claimed five gold, one silver
and one bronze. This performance,
the U.S.’ best to date in the Olympic
games, triggered new interest in
amateur boxing.
The 1976 team included now-fa
mous Sugar Ray Leonard, Howard
Davis, Michael and Leon Spinks,
Leo Randolph and John Tate.
In 1979 a new U .S .A team won
seven gold, one silver and one
bronze at the W orld Cups in New
York City. In 1980 a tragic air crash
which killed a 22-member delega
tion, together with a major defec
tion to the professional ranks, set
the team back again.
In the 1982 W orld C ham pion
ships the U .S .A . did even better,
gaining three gold, two silver and
two bronze to take second place.
Cuba was first with 47, U.S.A. 38,
U.S.S.R. 35.
One o f the U .S .A .’ s m ajor
problems has been identification of
boxers and provision o f consistent
coaching and tra in in g . A lthough
many young boxers come up
through Golden Gloves and U.S.
Amateur Athletic Association, there
is no coordinated, nationwide effort
to identify and assist young athletes.
FOR SALES
Our New Modem BulMIng
A look at the current team demon
strates that fact well:
Israel Acosta, the U .S.A.’s oldest
team member at 27, is self-coached;
Bernard Gray, featherweight, and
John Jackson, light middleweight,
are coached by their fathers. Others
list coaches for the boxing clubs to
which they belong. Biggs has re
ceived some coaching from M ike
M o rto n, who has coached many
amateurs including Sugar Ray-
Leonard.
This year’ s team was selected
from winners at the U.S. Amateur
Boxing Championships in A p ril,
follow ed by the Sport Festival in
which the fo u r top contenders in
each weight class fought. The
U.S.A. Amateur Boxing Federation
selected the team based on perform
ance in those two meets and interna
tional com petition. The team then
trained as a u nit in C olorado
Springs before final selections were
made.
The U.S. answer to lack o f oppor
Tyrell Biggs gives his all in unsuccessful attempt to defeat Teofilo
tunités fo r consistent coaching is
Stevenson. Biggs was KO'd in the second round.
“ Operation G old,” a new grant-in-
and board, educational expenses,
still the U.S.’ best bet for the Olym
aid program sponsored by U .S .A ./
medical care and tra in in g w ill be
pics. His defection would be a ma
A .B .F. Young men who appear to
p r o v id e d . U . S . A . / A . B . F ..
jo r one.
be Olympic prospects w ill live and
through corporate donations, is
train at the U.S. Olympic Training
covering expenses.
Mark Breland, 19, won the 147-
Center in Colorado Springs. Room
Operation G old’s purpose is two
pound title in the 1982 World Box
fold—to aid in the growth o f young
ing Championships and was named
fighters and to assist the U.S. in en
the tournament’ s outstanding box
suring a top team in the Olympics.
er. Breland, one o f four Americans
A third factor operating against
to win in the C uba-U .S.A. match
the U.S.A. team—and perhaps the
last week, is 8-0 in in ternational
strongest— is the pressure to turn
competition.
professional.
A native o f Bedford-Stuyvcsant,
U.S. super-heavyweight T yre ll
Breland also hears the call o f the
Biggs, who holds the world’s cham
professional. His current goal is to
pionship, said recently that his
win the New York Golden Gloves a
toughest fig h t is w ith him self.
fifth time—the fourth in 1983 and
Should he turn pro? Or should he
the fifth in 1984. Then he wants to
remain an amateur? An O lym pic
go to the Olympics and win a gold
gold medal has always been his
medal. After that he will turn pro.
dream, Biggs explained, but turning
Breland, who starred in the mo
pro before 1984 is a possibility.
vie, “ Lords o f D iscipline,” looks
“ I ’ m not a m illionairre and things
forward to an acting career after re
are getting bad.” I f the price were
tiring from boxing at 26 or 27.
rig h t, he would be ready fo r the
Whether either Biggs or Breland
will be with the U.S.A. team in Los
pros. Biggs, who lost to Teofilo Ste
MARK BRELAND
Angeles is a big question.
venson on a second round KO, is
I “ - <r!
“ He has it all. He punches good.
He’s got better ability than Cassius
Clay (later Muhammad A li),” said
Joe Louis when he was promoting
boxing in Los Angeles. Spencer was
C a lifro n ia State Heavyweight
Championship in 1965.
Spencer fell victim to life in the
fast lane and never reached his full
potential. A t age 29, after cocaine
put a damper on his career and de
stroyed his fam ily life, Spencer re
tired from the ring.
“ M a rtin Luther King, Jr. once
stated that he had been to the
mountain to p ,” Spencer said.
“ Well, so have I. 1 know what life is
all about now and I have a much
better perspective. I ’ ve been at the
top and on the bottom. My positive
actions w ill speak for me from here
on out.”
Thad Spencer Productions w ill
feature Larry Frazier and Ishar Mu
hammad at the Seattle Paramount
Theatre on December 2nd. Frazier,
North*»»'. Broadway at F in i
BEST
BUYS
Alan Molden
I D
æ
in town
FORD
Receive
r
$50°° cash or discount
with purchase.
LYNN KIRBY COLISEUM FORD
KM
✓
56 NE Broadway 288-5211
Tires
NEW U S E D b R EC A PPE D
A S LITTl F AS $ 3 0 ° ° A PA IR
Batterie« mag wheels shocks
2 6 5 J UNION AVE N . E .
Portland. Oregon
0*>fN MON
SAT
1AM
6?«*
288 - 9700
ranked tenth by the WBA, has im
pressive victories over M ike Wea
ver, J e ff Simmons, and Jumbo
Cummings. Muhammad is from
London, England.
The card also includes: lig h t
weights Irish Randy M cN u rlin
(Seattle) and Hattie Jimenez (Sacra
mento); and light heavyweights Dale
G rant (Tacoma) and King David
Smith (Los Angeles).
•
(For tickets contact Double Tee
Productions.)
W A N N A S T A R T S O M E T H IN ?
Then try the U nion A ven u e . . .
®
B A TTE R Y X-CHANGE
FREE Installation
FREE B attery Test
FREE E lectrical check
High school football hopefuls
face quarter-final showdown
by Joe White
The Oregon Class A A A high
school fo o tb a ll p layoffs have
reached the c ritic a l point as four
unique but different teams will bat
tle in the semi-finals Friday night.
Encounter number one pits the
surprise team o f the group. South
Salem, against an undefeated Leb
anon squad in Corvallis. The Sax
ons o f South Salem entered the
playoffs with a 5-4 record but have
scratched their way to three straight
wins and the semifinals. Two years
ago Beaverton won the state cham
pionship with a 10-4 record, a feat
the Saxons hope to equal.
Howard University split-end
Tracy Singleton is the nation's
leading pass receiver in NCAA
Division 1 AA football. Single-
ton, a senior, recently broke the
all-tim e career record of no
catches set by Joel Sigler of
Portland State University (1977-
19801
Standing in the way though is a
powerful and underrated Lebanon
W a rrio r team. Lebanon earned a
sem ifinal berth last week by
stampeding over previously unde
feated Pendleton 34-20. Running
backs Bo Yates and Carl M orris
provide the Warriors with a power
ful running attack that hasn’ t been
stopped so far. Yates has scored 32
points in the three p la y o ff games
while M orris has rambled for five
touchdowns and 30 points.
For South Salem to win this con
test, tney must stop Lebanon’ s run
ning attack while generating an o f
fensive attack o f their own. Soren
Sorenson leads the Saxsons with five
touchdowns during the playoffs. He
scored the two touchdowns fo r
South Salem in a 15-0 quarterfinal
victory over Canby.
This game begins at 8 p.m. on Fri
day in Parker Stadium but w ill be
overshadowed by the other semifin
al game that starts a half-hour later
in Portland.
The Black Tornado o f Medford
w ill invade Portland with the hope
of taking one more step on the drive
to give re tirin g head coach Fred
Spiegelberg a state championship
for a retirement gift. Medford is 12-
0 and gunning for victory number
40 in the state playoffs. The team
narrowly won its final two regular
season games but since then has ex
ploded to three straight wins. Stand
ing in the shadows waiting for the
Black Tornado is a red hot Gresham
fo o tb a ll team. An opening game
loss to Sunset has been the only
blemish on the Gophers record. The
11-1 Gophers upset number two
ranked Lakeridge last weekend, 32-
14.
This contest matches up one of
the state’ s stingiest defenses against,
without a doubt, the state’ s most
potent offense. Gresham has given
up only 91 points in 12 games, an
average of 7.6 points per game.
Meanwhile, the Black Tornado
scored more than all the Gophers’
opponents in just its first two play
o ff games. A fter the second round
o f the tournam ent, M edford had
scored 101 points and added 32
more for a three game total of 133
points.
Not only will Gresham be battling
the tra d itio n o f M edford p la y o ff
success but also an offense that runs
up megapoints and a defense that
damages like a tornado.
Five Medford players have scored
at least two touchdowns during the
PARTS • REPAIRS
for the
Thad Spencer promotes boxing
Thad Spencer, a local form er
heavyweight, has moved into pro
m oting under the Thad Spencer
Productions label.
Spencer began his boxing career
at 14 at the old Knott Street Com
munity Center, under the direction
o f Clyde Q uiscnberry. A t 15, he
fought as an amateur middleweight
and the next year was chief sparring
partner for Eddie Machen (number
two ranked WBA, 1959). He won the
the Golden Gloves Championship in
the heavyweight division in 1960.
SERVICE
3007 N.E. Union Ave.
p la yo ffs, a balanced attack that
forces opponents to cover all angles
o f the Tornado attack. Steve Stan-
c lif f has scored 26 points behind
four touchdowns and one two-point
conversion. Quarterback Jeff Yar
nell guides the Medford offense and
has contributed five touchdown
passes during the three p la y o ff
games.
Gresham also boosts a strong o f
fensive show as evidenced by a 26
point outburst that shocked unde
feated Lakeridge last week. Darin
Humphrys has four touchdowns to
his credit during the post season
while Brian Hug and flashy wide rc-
ciever Gabe Gomez have scored
three touchdowns.
Everytime Gomez touches the
ball, sparks start to fly and Medford
must tame the little fireplug. If not,
an upset to make all upsets could be
in the offing.
Gresham won’t go down easy but
whether or not the players will falter
under the Black Tornado pressure
will be the telling point.
Picking Lebanon over South Sa
lem looks to be a safe bet but the
other one could be close. Medford
has the power and tra d itio n . Gre
sham is hot and has a talented team.
I f the Gophers can come out strong
and gain some early confidence, a
victo ry could be in their grasp.
Should Medford open up an early
lead, the game could be history be
fore the Gophers know what hi,
them. No matter what, the Gresham
-Medford matchug looks to be one
o f the best this season.
E «changa
249-0101
WE'RE
HERETO
HELP
C H EV R O LET
YOU!
Expert
consultation
on your
transportation
needs
on both new
and used cars.
WENDELL BROWN
Su/<-\ h r p r r y fili’ ^'i'
RON TONKIN
C H E V R O LE T-H O N D A CO
122 N.E. 122nd Ave.
a