Team USA to compete in the 2006 World Cup in Baku

The team event features athletes from the world's top amateur boxing nations including 2005 World Cup finalists Russia and Cuba.

Six national champions, two former National Golden Gloves champions, and a U.S. Championships silver medalist all made the trip. 2004 Olympian Rau'shee Warren (Cincinnati, Ohio) will lead the U.S. team in addition to 2005 National Champions, lightweight Danny Garcia (Philadelphia, Pa.); welterweight Demetrius Andrade (Providence, R.I.); light heavyweight Christopher Downs (Fort Carson, Colo.); heavyweight Adam Willett (Bellport, N.Y.); and super heavyweight Jonte Willis (Fircrest, Wash.). 2005 Golden Gloves light flyweight champion Roberto Ceron (Lawrenceville, Ga.); 2004 Golden Gloves featherweight champion Luis Del Valle (Newburgh, N.Y.) and 2006 U.S. Championships light welterweight silver medalist Hector Ramos (San Antonio, Texas) round out the nine-member team.

The United States will be one of eight countries competing in the team event with Russia, Ukraine and Azerbaijan representing the European Continental zone, Kazakhstan and Thailand representing the Asian zone, Cuba and the United States serving as the Americas zone representatives and a United team competing for the African zone.

Preliminary competition is scheduled to begin on October 16 with the semifinals taking place on October 20 and final round boxing on October 21.

Reigning national champions Gary Russell, Jr. (Capitol Heights, Md.) and Daniel Jacobs (Brooklyn, N.Y.) were scheduled to compete in the event but had to pull out due to injuries suffered at the 2006 National PAL Championships, October 2-7.

/www.sportsfeatures.com/