When he represented the United States of America in the 2012 Olympic games, boxer Terrell Gausha came to the ring proudly wearing his American flag bandanna. After being bounced from the games in the second round of the games in what many felt was a robbery — one of far too many during the 2012 session — Gausha explained “Even great fighters, like Evander Holyfield and Roy Jones Jr., had to deal with bad calls in the Olympics. I was just grateful to be able to represent the USA at the Olympics. That was my main goal when I started boxing.”
That pride in representing his company has dissolved in the wake of George Zimmerman’s acquittal in the killing of Trayvon Martin. Gausha explained his anger to TMZ:
“How can I wear my stars and stripes proudly in a country where they make a big deal out of Mike Vick fighting dogs; but not a young innocent black male’s life.”
…
“When I represented my country in the Olympics I was proud to wear my flag. I even wore it on my head on the way to the ring. What happened this weekend was a slap in the face.”
Gausha went on to say that he won’t represent a nation he feels is filled with “so much racism and hatred.”
TMZ claimed that Gausha, now a pro with a 4-0 record, wouldn’t be able to represent the USA in 2016. He would be if he wanted to minimize the amount of times he fights over the next few years with rule changes that say that pros with less than 15 fights are eligible going forward.
Update: Gausha tweeted a bit of clarification: