Marine Corps Times reported this week that the Marine Corps team won gold at the 2012 Armed Forces Boxing Championships on Feb. 3, besting the Army for the first time in 20 years.
Sgt. DeJesus Gardner had the last fight at the competition aboard Camp Pendleton, Calif., and needed to win in order to break a tie with the Army, according to a Marine news release.
Gardner, a competitor in the 201-pounds-and-up weight class, slugged it out against Army Sgt. Marvin Carey. Gardner won with a score of 14-13. Early in the fight, Gardner's left eye swelled and closed shut, but it didn't stop him.
"I told my daughter that daddy would bring her a gold medal, and daddy don't break no promises," Gardner said, according to the release.
Gold medalists soon will fight in the USA Boxing Nationals, a qualifier for Olympic hopefuls. The Armed Forces Boxing Championship series will begin airing on The Pentagon Channel on March 9 and will be available at www.pentagonchannel.mil/boxing.
