Robert Edward Shannon (born November 11, 1962) is an American former professional boxer.

Background

Shannon, who had a white mother and black father, started fighting in the streets as a young boy in Seattle's predominantly black Central District where he found kids who would start fights with him because he was white. He later moved to

Lynnwood, Washington Lynnwood is a city in Snohomish County, Washington, United States. The city is part of the Seattle metropolitan area and is located north of Seattle and south of Everett, near the junction of Interstate 5 and Interstate 405. It is the f ...

, where he continued to get into fights, this time with white kids who fought him because he was black.

Amateur career

After beating up one kid, he was invited to a gym where he began boxing at the age of 12. He would capture a national junior championship at 15 and a world junior championship at the age of 16. Shannon qualified for the 1980 Olympic games as a 17-year-old at 106 pounds, but did not compete due to the

1980 Summer Olympics boycott The 1980 Summer Olympics boycott was one part of a number of actions initiated by the United States to protest against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. The Soviet Union, which hosted the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, and its allies later ...

. In 2007, he received one of 461

Congressional Gold Medal The Congressional Gold Medal is an award bestowed by the United States Congress. It is Congress's highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished achievements and contributions by individuals or institutions. The congressional pract ...

s created especially for the spurned athletes. He also qualified for the Olympics in 1984 at 119 pounds, but was eliminated in the third bout against Sung-Kil Moon of South Korea. He was the only member of the 1984 USA Olympics boxing team who did not win a medal. Shannon's amateur record was 124–27.

Amateur highlights

*1980 National AAU Champion – 106 pounds *1980 Olympic Trials – defeated Tommy Ayers to qualify *1982 United States Amateur championships 119 pounds – lost to

Meldrick Taylor Meldrick Taylor (born October 19, 1966) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1984 to 2002. He is a two-weight world champion, having held the IBF junior welterweight title from 1988 to 1990, and the WBA welterweight title ...

in final (5–0) *1984 National Golden Gloves bantamweight champion *1984 Olympic Trials – defeated Jesse Benavides on points 5–0, to qualify

Professional career

Shannon turned professional in 1984 and was undefeated in his first 15 fights before losing a split decision to future champion Greg Richardson in 1986. The following year Shannon lost to future champ Jose Sanabria and his career began to slide. He retired from the sport in 1990Robert Shannon
Boxrec later worked as a barber and a boxing trainer at his own gym.

References

1962 births Living people Sportspeople from Seattle Bantamweight boxers Super-bantamweight boxers Boxers from Washington (state) American male boxers Boxers at the 1984 Summer Olympics Olympic boxers for the United States Congressional Gold Medal recipients People from Lynnwood, Washington Sportspeople from Snohomish County, Washington {{US-boxing-bio-stub