Teen boxer out of Omaha wins 2 boxing titles in 2 weeks

Two national championships in two weeks — that’s how 16-year-old Jazmin Gutierrez-Garcia is taking women’s boxing by storm.With quick feet, fast hands and a relentless drive to improve, the Omaha teen is rapidly making a name for herself in the sport.”I still come every day to get better and better — 1% better every day,” Gutierrez-Garcia said.She first stepped into B&B Sports Academy five years ago at just 11 years old. What started as a new experience quickly became something more.”It’s basically my second home,” she said.It didn’t take long for her coach, Hugh Reefe, to recognize her potential.”She just kept improving, and she doesn’t like to lose,” Reefe said.Reefe took Gutierrez-Garcia under his wing, guiding her development and helping shape her approach to the sport.”To have an athlete that appreciates the process — the cycle, the coaching, the way we’re doing things — and truly believes in it, that’s just a joy,” he said.That commitment to the process has set her apart. Reefe says only a small fraction of young athletes who walk through the gym doors ever compete.”Not everyone competes here — maybe 1 out of 10,” he said.Gutierrez-Garcia began competing at 11, bringing with her a mindset that continues to define her in the ring.”She’s just got a mindset like, ‘I’m not about to let this girl beat me,'” Reefe said.Now, five years later, that mentality is paying off in a big way. She recently won two national championships in just two weeks.”I am at the top level where other number one girls in my country are, and I feel ready for anything in the ring,” Gutierrez-Garcia said.Her rapid rise is drawing comparisons to one of Omaha’s greatest fighters, Terence Crawford.”What’s similar between her and Terence is when they were kids — if somebody punches you in the face, they don’t blink,” Reefe said.Her success has already earned her a place in the gym’s rafters, alongside champions who came before her.”We’re going to hang her poster right between Terence Crawford’s posters to show she’s a champion of this gym — a queen of the gym,” Reefe said.But for Gutierrez-Garcia, the titles are just the beginning.”I see myself on Team USA, training at the Olympic center and hopefully going to the Olympics,” she said.And no matter how far her career takes her, she says her roots will remain in Omaha.”I started here. This was my first gym, and I’ll forever stay in this gym,” she said.

OMAHA, Neb. —

Two national championships in two weeks — that’s how 16-year-old Jazmin Gutierrez-Garcia is taking women’s boxing by storm.

With quick feet, fast hands and a relentless drive to improve, the Omaha teen is rapidly making a name for herself in the sport.

“I still come every day to get better and better — 1% better every day,” Gutierrez-Garcia said.

She first stepped into B&B Sports Academy five years ago at just 11 years old. What started as a new experience quickly became something more.

“It’s basically my second home,” she said.

It didn’t take long for her coach, Hugh Reefe, to recognize her potential.

“She just kept improving, and she doesn’t like to lose,” Reefe said.

Reefe took Gutierrez-Garcia under his wing, guiding her development and helping shape her approach to the sport.

“To have an athlete that appreciates the process — the cycle, the coaching, the way we’re doing things — and truly believes in it, that’s just a joy,” he said.

That commitment to the process has set her apart. Reefe says only a small fraction of young athletes who walk through the gym doors ever compete.

“Not everyone competes here — maybe 1 out of 10,” he said.

Gutierrez-Garcia began competing at 11, bringing with her a mindset that continues to define her in the ring.

“She’s just got a mindset like, ‘I’m not about to let this girl beat me,'” Reefe said.

Now, five years later, that mentality is paying off in a big way. She recently won two national championships in just two weeks.

“I am at the top level where other number one girls in my country are, and I feel ready for anything in the ring,” Gutierrez-Garcia said.

Her rapid rise is drawing comparisons to one of Omaha’s greatest fighters, Terence Crawford.

“What’s similar between her and Terence is when they were kids — if somebody punches you in the face, they don’t blink,” Reefe said.

Her success has already earned her a place in the gym’s rafters, alongside champions who came before her.

“We’re going to hang her poster right between Terence Crawford’s posters to show she’s a champion of this gym — a queen of the gym,” Reefe said.

But for Gutierrez-Garcia, the titles are just the beginning.

“I see myself on Team USA, training at the Olympic center and hopefully going to the Olympics,” she said.

And no matter how far her career takes her, she says her roots will remain in Omaha.

“I started here. This was my first gym, and I’ll forever stay in this gym,” she said.