BEIJING — Things are good — at least for now.
Winning sometimes can heal a lot of old wounds.
After a summer of turmoil, Luis Yanez finally stepped back in a boxing ring on Wednesday night.
And he was back doing what Yanez does best: fight.
“I was so happy when that first bell sounded,” Yanez said.
The United States’ best 106-pounder then went out and outpointed Jose Kelvin de la Nieve of Spain 12-9 in his Olympic opener.
It wasn’t one of those Sugar Ray Leonard-like Olympic performances that we all remember, but it was a solid, smart fight for the 19-year-old from Duncanville, Texas.
He was constantly on the move, picking his spots against the pursuing Spaniard. And when he found them he wasn’t throwing one punch at a time but instead firing two or three.
Yanez was following the strategy of Dan Campbell, a coach that he has had his problems with this summer.
“He told me to keep my hands up moving to the left or right. He told me to catch him coming in with the 2-3-2 cut. I was catching him with a straight left and then hitting him with a hook,” the young Texan explained.
“Anytime these guys listen to what we have worked on for 10 months, they are going to do well,” Campbell said. “The execution attests to what we have worked on and how it can work in the international ring.”
Make that 91/4 months for Yanez.
He left the U.S. training camp in Colorado Springs in June to attend his graduation from Duncanville High School. And never returned.
Yanez later claimed he was caring for his sister and her four children while she went through rehabilitation for a crack cocaine addiction, according to a story by The Associated Press.
Some think he, like some of his teammates, didn’t like it that Campbell had reinstated the USA Boxing residency program after a 24-year absence, making the fighters train with the Olympic staff and not their personal coaches.
Campbell said he did it to focus on teamwork and stress how to fight against international competition.
At one point, the coach reportedly called Yanez a “liar” during his three-week AWOL and kicked him off the team.
The boxer didn’t have many kind words for Campbell either.
“When you have an argument with your son, doesn’t he call people and talk about ‘I hate him?’ The difference is these guys have access to the press. When they say, ‘I hate him,’ they say it to the press,” the 65-year-old coach said after Wednesday’s fight.
“Luis was always a good person. He is so loyal to the people around him, and they gave him some terrible advice. That’s why we wanted him back. It wasn’t Luis, it was the people who should have been giving him good advice.”
In July, the USA Boxing judicial committee voted unanimously to not let Yanez go to the Olympics. But just a few days later, an agreement was reached, and the boxer apologized to everyone.
And right now, the two-time national champion and two-time National Golden Gloves champion has an Olympic win and is looking for more.
“Everything happens for a reason. God works in mysterious ways,” Yanez said. “I’m here with him (Campbell). He’s a good guy. We’re working real hard, and we are going to get through this.
“I want to put everything behind us. Everything is good. I will continue to work hard until we get that gold medal.”
Notice he said “we.”
That might tell you something.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
