The Truth: Errol Spence Jr.'s quest for Olympic glory

Errol "The Truth" Spence Jr.'s nickname was the result of the American boxer's winning a lot of fights in and out of the ring. Errol Spence Jr. started boxing at the age of 15 after figuring in brawls in his home state of Texas. Errol Spence, Jr. has won three straight U.S. amateur welterweight championships in 2009, 2010 and 2011.

And Errol Spence Jr. has a dream of being an Olympic champion. He wants that gold medal around his neck when the Games of the XXX Olympiad in London, England are over. In a recent Fox News interview, Errol Spence Jr. candidly admitted that "one of my dreams is getting the gold medal."

But Errol Spence Jr. also knows that the road to the podium is not easy. If experience is the best teacher, then his painful loss to bemedalled veteran Serik Sapiyev of Kazakhstan in the 2011 World Championships quarterfinals in Azerbaijan is a grim reminder of the hard work and sacrifices that he has to make if he wants to realize his golden dream.

That is why Errol Spence Jr. has trained and prepared hard for his chance of a lifetime in London. That is why prior to his trip to the Olympics he underwent an unorthodox regimen in his training that includes running the hot and humid streets of Texas at night, that usually led to him staying up as late or early as 1 a.m. just to get his workout.

Surely, at this stage of his career, the 22-year old Errol Spence Jr. is still a work in progress and whether he belongs in the elite circle of world amateur welterweights remains to be seen.

Errol Spence Jr.'s 16-10 victory over Ribeiro De Carvalho of Brazil in Day 2 of Olympic competition is nothing to what awaits him as he goes deeper into the competition wherein the likes of world champion Taras Shelestyuk of Ukraine, Egidijus Kavaliauskas of Lithuania and his erstwhile tormentor Serik Sapiyev are lurking.

Yes, whether Errol Spence Jr.'s preparation and determination for the biggest stage of his life is enough will be first put to the test in the round of 16 wherein his competition will be a lot tougher and meaner. And this time around the next roadblock to an Olympic gold is 2011 World Amateur bronze medalist Krishan Vikas of India.

And if he gets by the Indian fighter, it's still a mystery who he will meet in the next round. The road may be hard but if Errol Spence Jr. wants to have a shot at achieving his dream he needs to tough it up and fight the way that he is capable of fighting -- like a fearless gladiator in the lion's den.


Note: This article was previously published on Detroit Fight Sports Examiner