Rocket City’s Three National Entrants Took Different Routes
Rocket City Boxing prepared three athletes for the 2024 USA Boxing National Championships: Sydney Houston, Lance Holloway and Bradley Belt. The tournament ran from December 16–21 at the Greater Richmond Convention Center in Richmond, Virginia, bringing together competitors from across the country.
Houston qualified through a division victory
Houston earned her place by winning the 112-pound division at the Women’s Nationals in Louisiana that August. Contemporary local reporting recorded three victories during that qualifying tournament.
The former Tanner High basketball player had returned to North Alabama after living in Texas. Her preparation at Rocket City combined that earlier athletic experience with the demands of national-level boxing competition.
Holloway and Belt brought different experience
Holloway entered as a light heavyweight with more than thirty bouts behind him. He had won his two previous fights to qualify, and coach Allen Martin highlighted his jab and fundamentals.
Belt received a waiver based on recent performances. The heavyweight’s reported amateur record stood at nine wins and two losses, including five knockouts, after previously competing in college basketball.
Richmond provided a large national stage
USA Boxing reported 1,304 registered competitors representing forty-five states and Washington, D.C. The championship schedule covered six days, with youth and elite finals concluding the event on Saturday.
For the Huntsville club, the three entrants represented separate paths into the same national tournament: a division championship, recent qualifying victories and an exemption. Their preparation connected local gym work with an opportunity to compete against a much broader field.
Sources
- Madison County Record: Rocket City entrants, qualification routes and backgrounds
- USA Boxing: official dates, venue and tournament archive
- USA Boxing: registered field and state representation
- USA Boxing: concluding youth and elite finals
