The Gateway City has quickly become a boxing hotbed. The city of about 230,000 people has been producing high-level professionals and amateur boxers at break-neck speeds. Laredo now has its first-ever Olympian. Jennifer "La Traviesa" Lozano needs no introduction in The Gateway City, and the 50-kilo (110-pound) female fighter has her ticket to the 2024 Paris Summer Games.
The 20-year-old qualified for the games with a dominant 5-0 points victory over Canadian Mckenzie Wright in the quarter-finals of the Pan-Am Games in Santiago, Chile. In an emotional moment, Lozano gave her ticket to her mother, who was in the stands, and the pair celebrated Lozano qualifying for the Olympics.
"We are going to Paris, baby. La Traviesa es de Laredo, Texas. We are ready for all of the world. We are going to the Olympics," The Laredoan exclaimed and went on to say, "Being the first Olympian from Laredo means a lot to me."
The Border town will have an excellent chance to get its second Olympian later in the year as Emilio Garcia, who came up just short in the Pan Am games, will have two more chances to qualify for the games in the 63.5 Kilos men's division.