Canada’s Tammara Thibeault Won Settle for Less than Gold at Paris Olympics
Out of all the boxers heading to the 2024 Olympics in Paris, Canada’s Tammara Thibeault is one to watch closely. The 27-year-old is set to compete in the 75-kilogram weight class. But she’s not going to Paris to enjoy the experience and hope for the best. Thibeault has her sights set on winning gold and nothing else.
Thibeault began boxing when she was just nine years old. She was inspired by her father, former CFL wide receiver Patrick Thibeault, as well as her brother.
In 2022, Thibeault secured the world championship, only to be part of several nations boycotting the event in 2023 to protest the International Boxing Association. She also won the most recent Commonwealth Games and is a two-time Pan American Boxing gold medallist.
She currently has a 25-match unbeaten streak that dates back to her quarterfinal defeat at the Tokyo Olympics. While that winning streak makes her the favorite to win gold in Paris, Thibeault isn’t letting that disrupt her focus.
“I try not to think about it. It’s normal, I’m the reigning world champion,” says Thibeault. “But it’s a new tournament. Everyone starts on the same footing and, above all, I don’t underestimate any of my opponents. I also don’t rely on being the favorite.”
Despite Thibeault’s success in recent years, it’s a little surprising to see a Canadian as the gold medal favorite. In May 2022, dozens of boxers penned an open letter to Sports Canada claiming a “toxic culture of fear and silence” in Boxing Canada. As a result, high-performance director Daniel Trepanier was forced to resign, replaced by Vincent Auclair.
Under Auclair, Canadian boxing appears to be in a better place. That has created a better environment for someone like Thibeault to thrive. However, she says she never let things outside the ring serve as a distraction.
“I have always been an athlete focused on myself,” she explains. “I didn’t worry too much about the people in charge of the federation. I always took charge of my development and was going to do a second Olympic cycle anyway.”
Canada hasn’t had a boxer win an Olympic medal since heavyweight, David Defiagbon won a silver medal in 1996. The country hasn’t won Olympic gold since 1988 when the legendary Lennox Lewis reached the top of the podium in Seoul. Changing that now rests solely on the shoulders of Thibeault and men’s boxer Wyatt Sanford, who will compete in the 63-kilogram class.
Boxing at the Paris Olympics will begin on July 27 and run until August 10. The Paris Nord Arena will host the preliminary fights with famed tennis venue Roland Garros, the site of the French Open, hosting the finals. That’s where Thibeault is planning to collect her gold medal.
Canadian fans who want to get behind Thibeault or Sanford may wonder: is sports betting league in Canada? As long as it’s done at an online gambling platform, sports betting is legal. Therefore, betting on Olympic boxing and a host of other sports is legal throughout Canada.
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