Iraq vet is oldest boxer in U.S. history on Olympic team

HOUSTON -- The youngsters back at Fort Carson have got nothing on Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Downs.

The 32-year-old father of two became the oldest American boxer in history to make the Olympic team on Saturday night, beating Yathomas Riley to win the 178-pound championship at the U.S. Olympic trials.

A member of the U.S. Army's World Class Athlete Program, Downs served in Iraq from January 2004 to March 2005. He's still on active duty, but the military will allow him to dedicate all of his time training for Beijing.

"This is another feather in the cap," Downs said. "When I go back to the line and tell all those young guys, 17, 18 years old, and they say, 'Come on, Sergeant Downs, get up that hill,' I'll just pull that feather out and say, 'When you make the Olympic team, then you can talk to me like that.' "

Downs only took up boxing in 2003, but stopped when he was deployed to Tikrit, a provincial capital in one of Iraq's most unstable regions.

Downs was a member of a 16-man platoon that was often in the line of fire -- 11 men were wounded and received Purple Hearts, including four under his direct command.

"Every time I went outside the wall, every time I laced up my boots, every time I put a magazine in," he said, "I was afraid for my life."

Downs threw himself into boxing when he returned, setting Beijing as the goal. After what he saw in Iraq, he's never lacked motivation.

"Anybody that sees their friends and superiors put their lives on the line, knowing what can happen to you any second of the day," Downs said, "it changes your perspective. It opens your eyes to a lot of things and opens your mind to a lot of things you probably wouldn't try."

Downs won the last two light heavyweight national titles and captured a bronze medal at the Pan Am Games in July. Still light on experience, Downs said his Army training has made him a better boxer.

"Just being in the Army, that gives you confidence enough in yourself," Downs said. "All the training we do -- jumping from helicopters, jumping out of planes -- you've got to be competent at what you do at all times."

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Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press