Shadows of a Dynasty: Claressa Shields’ Olympic Boxing Triumph Outside the Rio Spotlight: Outside the Rio Spotlight, #7

By Maria Kaj

Coming out of Flint, Michigan might mean bleak prospects for some, but boxer Claressa Shields planned to bring glory to her hometown from the time she was a little girl. After winning a gold medal at the London Olympics, she intended to win a second in Rio, even though no American boxer had ever done so. In a sport where the U.S. glory has, for the moment, passed its prime, Shields brought bravado and intensity back to American Boxing on the biggest stage of all. This account of her struggle just to make it to Rio, and how she faced her challengers in the ring, will have you hopeful for her future and the future of the sport. (7500 words)

• Language: English
• Publisher: Maria Kaj
• Release date: Nov 4, 2018
• ISBN: 9781386991670

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Text copyright © by Maria Kaj 2018

Cover design collaboration by Maria Kaj and Karin Kaj.

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Information contained is based on publicly available sources and is neither authorized nor endorsed by the United States Olympic Committee (USOC/Team USA) or its athletes.

Although the author and publisher have attempted to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the information contained, we assume no responsibility for errors, inaccuracies, omissions, or any inconsistency herein. Information provided is as is.

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This story is one chapter of a full-length work, covering a dozen examples of American excellence at the 2016 Olympics. While Shields’ account stands on its own, it can be read along with the others in Outside the Rio Spotlight: American Triumphs You Didn’t See at the 2016 Olympics. The book can be purchased in ePub and other forms at other fine digital purveyors. The paperback edition is also available at the author’s website at kajmeister.com.

Shadows of a Dynasty:

Claressa Shields’ Olympic Boxing Triumph Outside the Rio Spotlight

by Maria Kaj

Foreword

As Gertrude Stein or George Orwell might have said:

A gold medal is a gold medal is a gold medal.

…however…

All gold medals are equal, but some are more equal than others.

At the 2016 Rio Olympics, the United States dominated in sport at an unprecedented level, winning 46 gold and 121 total medals. This was the highest gold medal and total medal count for America—or for any nation—when not hosting the Games in a non-boycotted Olympics. Americans won in 20 of the 27 sport categories with 210 athletes receiving medals across dozens of individual categories. By any stretch of the imagination, that is a whopping mound of athletic success.

However, if you watched the national prime time feed or just scanned headlines, only six sports seemed to take place. The vast majority