Andre Ward receives ‘Key to the City’
If you haven’t seen on TV30 Mayor Sbranti’s ‘State of the City Address” you can view the 5-minute version here!
Andre Ward will be presented a ‘Key to the City’ during the Mayor’s “State of the City” Address on Wednesday, January 26th at the Shannon Community Center beginning at 11:30am. The following is a bio on Andre Ward.
AGE: 25-YEARS-OLD
HEIGHT: 6-1
WEIGHT: 168 POUNDS
RESIDENCE: DUBLIN, CALIFORNIA
RECORD: 21-0 (13 KOs)
COACH: Virgil Hunter
WBA SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT WORLD CHAMPION
NABF AND NABO SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMPION
2004 OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST
UNDEFEATED SINCE 1996
Andre “S.O.G” Ward followed his father, the late Frank Ward, into the sweet science as a nine-year-old in Oakland, Calif., fifteen years ago. His skill and talent was apparent early in his outstanding amateur career as he racked up every title in the books, culminating in a gold medal in the light heavyweight division at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece. As the only American boxer to claim Olympic gold in the past decade, Ward joined the likes of Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard and Oscar De La Hoya.
Andre entered the professional ranks on December 18, 2004, winning a second round TKO victory over Chris Molina at the Staples Center and live on HBO. He has gone on to rack up 20 more victories since that time, building his ever-growing legion of fans with his patented speed and skill inside the ring and his charisma and character outside of it.
With a dominating upset victory over reigning WBA World Champion and Super Six World Boxing Classic favorite on November 21st, Andre claimed his first world title in front of over 10,000 passionate fans. The Bay Area star has filled the Oracle Arena in Oakland in his last two fights, winning a unanimous decision over heavy-hitting Edison Miranda in May before claiming the WBA crown over Kessler in November.
His victory catapulted the 25-year-old athlete to the verge of super stardom as well as the top of the Super Middleweight division. Both Ring Magazine and ESPN currently rank Andre as the top super middleweight in the world. Yet, a WBA title, an Olympic gold medal and even a thirteen-year winning streak aren’t enough for this dedicated boxer, he plans to add several more belts and accolades to his trophy case in the coming years. Ward will return to the ring for his first title defense of the WBA crown on April 17th in a bout with Allan Green.