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Independent Lens | T-Rex: Her Fight for Gold

T-Rex
Independent Lens
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WKAR-MSU
T-Rex: Her Fight For Gold

The coming-of-age story of Flint native and Olympic contender Claressa Shields. WATCH NOW

Meet Claressa “T-Rex” Shields, who rose from the streets of Flint, Michigan, and at 17 won the first Olympic gold medal for women’s boxing in 2012.

T-Rex: Her Fight for Gold is a documentary about the coming-of-age story of boxing phenom Claressa Shields. The boxing star from Flint, Michigan, was just 17 years old when she won the Olympic gold medal for women’s boxing in 2012. Now with a record of 69-1, she is ranked number one in the world heading into her second Olympic competition, the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Summer Games.

The film traces her rise as an Olympic athlete from the streets of Flint to the podium in London, and the subsequent challenges and disappointments as Claressa watches fellow athletes receive recognition and endorsements while none come forward to support her, raising questions about race, class, and gender bias. Agents suggest she should soften her image, but Claressa is her own person, ready to push the boundaries while fighting for another gold and a better life.

Watch it now at video.wkar.org

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