Marlen Esparza: Bronze Medal Winner Represents Future of Women's Boxing

With the Floyd Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao fight forever in limbo, boxing turns to a new breed of athletes to revitalize the dying sport. With female boxing becoming an Olympic event for the first time at the London Games, American boxer Marlen Esparza is one of the budding stars of the sweet science.

Despite losing in the semifinals to China’s Ren Cancan—a three-time world champion—and settling for bronze, the 23-year-old flyweight is still an inspiration to millions of girls around the country. Esparza, along with teammate Claressa Shields, who will be competing for the middleweight gold medal on Thursday, will bring home the first American hardware from this event.

Perhaps even more telling about the significance of Esparza’s achievement is what she represents outside of the ring. The Houston native has done commercials for both Cover Girl and Coca-Cola prior to the Olympics, bucking the stereotype of what the average sports fan might picture for a female boxer.

Instead, Esparza is an example of the dichotomy between beauty and toughness. Being able to be a fighter, but also being able to show off her femininity as well must have been an impossible thought just a few generations ago. In an age of constant pressure from different media outlets regarding the female body image, Esparza shows that it’s OK for young people to be themselves.    

With the UFC taking over as the premier fighting sport in the world, boxing could use anything positive to bring it back to the consciousness of sports fans. Surprisingly maybe it is female boxers like Esparza who can bring the sport back to life. With no American male boxing medals to show for at these Games, Esparza, along with Shields, may have to serve as not only the future of female boxing, but the future of the sport as a whole.