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Donaire brothers aiming for Sydney
Posted: Wednesday February 09, 2000 05:03 PM
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -- The brothers who box together, win together. At least until they fight each other, as could be the case with Nonito and Glenn Donaire. The brothers from San Leandro, Calif., won 106-pound bouts Wednesday at the opening of the U.S. Olympic Boxing Trials. If they win Thursday night, they meet for the championship Saturday. "It doesn't really matter who wins as long as one of us goes to the Olympics," said 20-year-old Glenn, who often spars with 17-year-old Nonito but has never opposed him in an official bout. Nonito Donaire opened the tournament by counter-punching his way to a 19-7 win over Ronald Siler of Cincinnati. He then watched and rooted as Glenn overwhelmed Karoz Norman of St. Louis 26-9 after four two-minute rounds, the Olympic format. The trials are a double elimination tournament. The champions and loser's bracket winners in the 12 weight classes go to the box-offs Feb. 24-26 at Foxwoods Casino at Mashantucket, Conn. The winners there will have to qualify at one of three Americas qualifying tournaments -- Tampa, Mexico and Argentina. "I would be very disappointed if we did not qualify 12 boxers for the Olympics," said Gary Toney, president of USA Boxing. The Donaire brothers, who came to the United States from the Philippines in 1993 are trained by their father Nonito Sr. and Robert Salinas. If they meet in this tournament, the father will work in Nonito's corner. It was a bittersweet day for Rock and Tiger Allen, 18-year-old identical twins from Philadelphia. Rock had strong third and fourth rounds and outpointed Mahlon Kerwick of Spokane, Wash., 16-9 at 132 pounds. But Tiger, who was supposed to box at 125 pounds Wednesday night, was disqualified when he weighed 4 1/2 pounds over the limit at the morning weigh-in. The brothers and their father-coach, Naazim Richardson, declined to comment. The day at the Tampa Port Authority Cruise Termanal No. 6 started poorly for the brothers LeChaunce and Teaunce Shepherd, students at Northern Michigan University. Dante Craig of Cincinnati, the 1999 Golden Gloves champion, scored a 14-12 decision over 25-year-old LeChaunce Shepherd, the 1997 and 2000 U.S. champion and a 1999 Pan American Games bronze medalist. Shepherd also lost his opening bout in the 1996 Olympic Trials. Shepherd landed the harder punches, especially left hooks, but the 21-year-old Craig was busier. The 22-year-old Teaunce Shepherd, a silver medalist at the U.S. championship, was to box Verquan Kimbrough of Aliquippa, Pa., at 125 pounds Wednesday night. Robert Guerrero, at 16 the youngest boxer in the 156-bout tournament, edged Jason Franco, a 21-year-old soldier based at Fort Carson, Colo., 10-7 at 119 pounds in the afternoon. The minimum age limit for competing in the Olympics is 17, and the deadline for reaching that age is March 27. Guerrero turns 17 on March 27. Fifty-four boxers from the Americas will qualify for the Sydney Olympics. Cuba does not need to qualify and will automatically field a full squad as the world's top-ranked team. Qualifying for the Olympics will be the winners and runners-up in 10 weight classes from 106 through 178 pounds and the winners at 201 pounds and super heavyweight at Tampa on March 27-April 1 and at Mexico City on April 17-22. The winners in the lower 10 weight classes at Buenos Aires on May 23-28 also will qualify for Sydney.
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