Familiar foe oustsThurman at Trials

With no Olympics in his future, the Clearwater fighter will turn pro.

By JOHN C. COTEY, Times Staff Writer
Published August 26, 2007

Keith Thurman's Olympic dream ended on Saturday night, put to rest after an 11-year chase at the U.S. Trials in Houston.

The Clearwater teen lost to Demetrius Andrade 21-13 in the 152-pound final. Andrade also handed Thurman his first loss in the double-elimination event, 27-13 on Wednesday.

"He just couldn't get off," said trainer Ben Getty, adding it was 1-0 after two rounds, so "neither did Andrade, really.

"It was a tactical fight; kind of boring, really. I thought this was the one time that Andrade didn't look so solid, but it was also just one of those times that Keith couldn't move his hands."

Thurman said before the Trials it would be his last amateur event if he did not qualify for the Olympics, and Getty said afterward his fighter would turn pro in the next few days.

Getty, Thurman's trainer since he started at age 7, said the fighter won't sign with a promoter but is close to finalizing a deal with a business manager in Houston.

Thurman, who turns 19 in November, is expected to make his pro debut in Tampa in October and will fight in the welterweight division (147 pounds), Getty said.

Part of his soon-to-be-announced managerial deal is Thurman will fight primarily in the Tampa Bay area during the next 2-3 years as he establishes himself as a pro.

Thurman finished his amateur career 94-13. He was trying to become the second Tampa Bay fighter to make the Olympic team after St. Petersburg's Jeff Lacy in 2000.

[Last modified August 26, 2007, 00:56:47]