(JULY 26) TORONTO, CANADA - The
American flyweights took the Pan American Games stage in final
round action on Saturday at the 2015 Pan American Games in
Toronto. Men's flyweight Antonio Vargas (Kissimmee, Fla.) ended
a gold medal drought for the American men on Saturday at the
Oshawa Sports Centre while 2012 Olympic bronze medalist and
reigning world champion Marlen Esparza (Houston, Texas) settled
for silver in her first Pan American Games.
Vargas kicked off the night's competition, facing off with Cuban
Olympian and 2011 Pan American Games silver medalist Yosbany
Veitia in the first bout of the night. The 18-year-old American,
who was facing his second Olympian of the tournament, refused to
be daunted by his decorated opponent. He grabbed the momentum
early, disrupting Veitia's rhythm with his effective aggression.
Vargas landed fast combinations and spun out of the Cuban's
range throughout the contest. A cut opened over Veitia's eye
late in the third round before Vargas closed the show with a
final flurry to cement the victory. He won a unanimous decision
victory over Veitia to claim Pan American Games gold. Vargas is
the first American man to win a gold medal in Pan American Games
boxing competition since Karl Dargan in 2007. He defeated two
athletes qualified for the 2016 Olympic Games during his week in
Toronto, beating Puerto Rico's Jeyvier Cintron Ocasio in the
quarterfinals. Vargas won four bouts en route to Pan American
Games gold.
"I worked hard for this victory. This is what I trained for, to
be victorious. Cuba has a big name so coming in to this
tournament, I studied Cuba and how to beat them and his
strengths and his weaknesses. I've been studying him and
training just for him. The right hand dictated the pace in the
first round and got respect right off the bat. He usually keeps
his hands low and with me, he was keeping them up so he
respected me. I wanted to break his rhythm. He has good rhythm
so the plan was to take his left side away and just throw
punches in the middle," Vargas said. "This is a good confidence
booster. I feel really confident now, but always stay humble.
This was a good experience and it helped me evolve as a better
boxer. Getting another gold medal (in the 2016 Olympics) is my
goal."
Summary Results in female bout from this press release: Mandy
Bujold won by a split decision over Marlen Esparza in four
rounds of boxing.
After failing to make the podium in 2011, the United States
finished second in the boxing team standings at the 2015 Pan
American Games with five medals. Vargas and 2012 Olympic
champion Claressa Shields (Flint, Mich.) won gold, Esparza took
silver and bantamweight Francisco Martinez (Dallas, Texas) and
super heavyweight Cam F. Awesome (Lenexa, Kansas) claimed
bronze.
Shields, the reigning Olympic, World and Pan American Games
champion, will serve as the flag bearer for the United States
team in Sunday's Pan American Games Closing Ceremony. She will
lead the United States contingent in to the Pan American
Ceremonies Venue with her boxing teammates following immediately
behind her.
The American squad will return to the United States on Monday
morning.
U.S. Results
112 lbs/female: Mandy Bujold, CAN, dec. Marlen Esparza, Houston,
Texas/USA, 2-1
114 lbs/male: Antonio Vargas, Kissimmee, Fla./USA dec. Yosbany
Veitia, CUB, 3-0
