(PUEBLO, Colo.) — Talented boxers from around the world are making a stop in Pueblo to get into the ring and compete in the 2024 USA Boxing International Invitational. The Pueblo Convention Center is hosting this event for the second time, welcoming more than 100 athletes representing more than a dozen countries.
“They are sending their boxers here to prepare because when you’re the best boxers in the world, you don’t box at home, you have to go around the world, ” USA Boxing CEO and Executive Director, Mike McAtee, said. “You know steel impacts steel, so that’s why we have all these great countries here and right now I think we’re sitting at 50 Olympians that have already qualified for the Olympic Games.”
When it comes to hosting this event in Pueblo, it was clear the strong relationship between USA Boxing and the city, specifically because of the Pueblo Convention Center’s atmosphere.
“The appeal of Pueblo is first, it’s a great city and very welcoming, you have a great convention bureau,” McAtee said. “The city and county governments are very welcoming, and this venue is amazing, so it fits all those needs for us.”
The Pueblo Convention Center eagerly anticipates not only hosting top boxers but welcoming passionate fans eager to witness the athletic competition in the ring, with many having the opportunity to witness firsthand the talent bound for the Paris Olympics.
“We’ve built a really great relationship with USA Boxing and it’s important to them to really kind of introduce people to the sport and so they wanted to make it free to the public to allow those individuals to come see what boxing is all about,” said General Manager of the Pueblo Convention Center, Kevin Ortiz.
As spectators and enthusiastic fans come to the Steel City for this experience, it is clear how hosting this event in Pueblo impacts the broader community.
“I think it’s cool because Pueblo’s much smaller, you know [than] Denver and everything else, they usually get all the big things going on,” Sam Walker, a passionate boxing fan from Pueblo, said. “So, when you come to Pueblo, it really makes a difference, I think.”
The Convention Center takes great pride in hosting this event and being able to welcome Olympians into the space to compete.
“This exhibit hall was built and completed in May of 2019, and these are the exact type of events that we were hoping to bring into the Pueblo community,” Ortiz said. “So, we’re really looking forward to hosting this event and seeing the community come and support the United States and we look forward to a great week of competition.”
Among those top talent heading to the Paris Olympics is Omari Jones, who was in Pueblo for training along with cheering on Team USA.
“I’m here in Pueblo to support my team, my team USA,” Jones said. “We have some top countries here, and I’m still training while doing that and putting in the work because we still got Paris to go, get that gold.”
One eager fan, Sam Walker, was at the Pueblo Convention Center early and got the chance to talk and take a selfie with Omari Jones.
Jones recently qualified for the Paris 2024 Olympics and described that moment as “a dream come true. Honestly, the emotions that came with it. were just like you finally captured your dream and goal and everything you worked for since the age of eight years old, so it’s been a long journey.”
As the spectators began to arrive on Tuesday morning, the anticipation of the matches, along with the prospect of seeing the world’s top talent in action was evident.
“What people should expect this week in Pueblo is high and just imagine great competition,” Jones said. “I mean, a lot of these boxers already qualified. So, you’re going to see Olympians against Olympians and a lot of these matches are going to be very close and intense.”
Matches will be held throughout the week starting at noon and 6 p.m. each day until Friday. The scheduled finals and medal ceremony will take place on Saturday at noon.
