Best Ever US Olympic Team?

1976. And the system was different, but they were a much better team. Out of 2008 vs '76, although the weight classes were different; for the ones that were the same I only think that Rau'shee Warren would beat his 1976 counterpart. I know a lot of people would say the 1984 Team, because of what those guys went on to do as pros, but that was a boycott Olympics and I can't rank that team higher than '76 in the amateurs. That, and one of the coaches I worked with in the past was on the 1976 team.

 

Your country should have a site similar to this http://www.olympics.org.uk/news.aspx?NE=2413 which is the British team with profiles on all of your countrys fighters.

 

Yeah, ours is www.usaboxing.org then under athletes all the Olympians profiles are marked by "2008 US Olympian".

Anyway, the best two on the US team this year are Rau'shee Warren and Demetrius Andrade. Warren went to the 2004 Olympics, he's 112 and won the World Championships last year; Andrade also won the world championships last year and is 152 pounds. Then Gary Russell at 119 and Raynell Williams at 125 are really good too. It's a good team overall; not what the best in the past were but better than 2004 I think.

 

Yeah, they did the Uniforms and shoes this year. The shoes were kind of hit or miss in terms of how they held up.

 

Our team looks **** if im brutally honest, i hope to be surprised.

 

Scotland, or do they compete as the UK? If it's the UK then your team is actually much stronger than recent years and have a really legitimate chance at a Gold with Frankie Gavin. David Price is also really good.

 

The best guys from England, Scotland and Wales all join and compete as Great Britain in the Olympics

Yeah i know Frankie Gavin is good but the rest of them i'm not to excited about tbh.

 

Ok, wasn't sure. In which case what I said before stands, the British team is much stronger than it has been in past years this year; and Frankie Gavin could be a strong shot to win Gold.

 

So basically one bad performance from Gavin and we come home with zero medals :rofl

 

Eh, David Price could too. It really depends on the draw, if Gavin gets a shitty draw and has; say, Tischenko in his first fight, he could be out immediately.

 

1976 would easily be the correct answer, I believe, as I've seen a comparision of the two teams and what they accomplished at the amateur level, and the '76 team have a fairly big lead in total championships both on the national level, as well as the international level.

Also, unlike half of the 1984 team (Tillman, Tate, Page, Biggs, and McCrory*) that wouldn't have won gold in any country but their own due to them getting some "hometown decisions" during those Games, I've not heard or read anything in regards to controversy for the 1976 team. On neutral ground and even without the Russians and Cubans participation, the 1984 American team really only deserved four gold medals, or five if you include Holyfield, who very likely would have won one if not for his unfortunate DQ. Five gold medals is what the 1976 team garnered and those were gained against the other two powerhouse nations in amateur boxing.

*The McCrory/Redzepovski fight is tough to find info on unlike the others (I've also seen some of the others), but some allude to it as a possible bad decision, such as Sports Illustrated who stated that McCrory gained "another controversial American victory" in their Aug 20th, 1984 issue.