FLINT (WJRT) -
(02/20/12) - It was a special welcome home for Flint boxing sensation Claressa Shields as the 16-year-old moves one step closer to realizing her Olympic dreams.
Over the weekend, Shields won the first ever women's middleweight championship at the U.S. Olympic team trials.
Soon, she'll head to China to compete for a spot in the London summer games.
Monday, a crowd of supporters were waiting as she stepped off her plane at Flint's Bishop International Airport.
"I really thought people thought I was going to win just a few fights and be out of the tournament, but I went out there and fought the number one girl the first day and smashed her," said Shields with a huge smile on her face.
"She was one of the ones that had to draw, pick a number, and just so happened she picked the number one seed," said coach Jason Crutchfield.
"She won the "most outstanding" fighter out of that tournament. She was pretty much the star of the show," he said.
Shields' mother, Marcella Adams, and many, many others were on hand to welcome Team Shields back Monday afternoon.
"Very proud of her," Adam said.
Shields and Crutchfield both thanked the Flint community for rallying around her.
Shields said she's going to continue to work hard to keep making people proud.
