SAN ANTONIO – While most high school seniors are preparing for Spring Break, prom and crossing the graduation stage, one Southwest High School student is preparing to make his run to join the U.S. boxing team for the 2028 Summer Olympics.
San Antonio’s Christian Paez is getting his chance. He will leave Sunday to begin training in Colorado.
Paez recently won the 2025 USA Boxing National Championships in Lubbock as a bantamweight in the youth male division. His success in West Texas, which includes the title of Youth Male Most Outstanding Boxer, has earned him a spot to join the U.S. Youth Selection Team in Colorado Springs.
“It’s a selection camp for U.S.A. boxing. Most of the champions from the tournament over here in Lubbock should be going over‚” Paez told KSAT 12 Sports last week. “They’re just trying to see who will make the cut to fight internationally in Bangkok, Thailand.”
Paez, who goes by the nickname “Sonic,” has a 34-4-0 record at the national level with 11 knockouts in 133 fights overall.
Paez said he’s been training out of his father’s gym, Alamo City Boxing Club, for as long as he can remember.
“My dad opened up the gym a little before I was born,” Paez said. “I’ve been in the gym since I was, like, four (years old), and I’ve been here watching and learning. When I turned eight, he put me in my first fight. And, ever since then, I’ve just been training. Trying to build something.”
Paez will head to Colorado to train for three weeks before flying across the globe to Thailand for his first international tournament.
“One week will be to get accumulated and all that, and the following week will be the actual tournament,” Paez said. “It’s exciting to travel: going to Thailand, going to Bangkok. It sounds really fun. It’s a little nerve-wracking because I’m going to be in a unfamiliar place for a long stretch of time. It will be my first international travel. I won’t even be with my parents. I’ll be with the boxing team.”
The U.S. Olympic Trails for boxing will be held in December.
We’ll take you “Inside the Ring” with more boxing coverage during KSAT Sports Now, which streams live at 7 p.m. Monday through Friday on KSAT Plus and KSAT.com.