Hawai'i fighters in U.S. Challenge

Advertiser Staff

Two Hawai'i boxers will compete in the U.S. Challenge, starting Friday at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.

Wai'anae's Samson Guillermo, who won a U.S. Amateur Boxing Championship title last week, and Dat Nguyen of Wailuku, Maui, will fight in the Challenge semifinals Friday. If they win, they will advance to Saturday's final.

Guillermo, 20, who is a junior at Northern Michigan University and trains with the Evolution Boxing Club in Pearl City, is the No. 1 seed in th 119-pound division. He fights fourth-seeded Kevin Hudgins of Pensacola, Fla.

Nguyen, who fights for the Wailuku Boxing Club, is the fourth seed in the 125-pound division and takes on Jose Perez Jr. of Fremont, Calif.

The champions will go to the Pan Am Games in the Dominican Republic in August and the runners-up will fight in the World Championships in Bangkok, Thailand in July.

The U.S. Challenge is the first qualifier for the Olympic Trials.

Last Friday, Guillermo became just the fourth boxer from Hawai'i to win a national championship, according to Bruce Kawano, who was selected by USA Boxing as one of the coaches at the U.S. Challenge.