Team USA Heads to Canada for Melee Gala X Showdown with Canada
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by USA Boxing
Team USA will compete in Winnipeg, Canada, this weekend at the Melee Gala X. USA Boxing is excited to send six emerging boxers for this intense duel against Canada, providing these athletes an opportunity to gain international experience.
These six boxers will face off against Canada on September 27 at 8 p.m. ET. Team USA fields four men and two women, led by National Youth & Junior Coach Edward Fonteneaux and Elite High Performance assistant coach Eric Zimmerman.
As for boxers, Noelle Haro (Austin, Texas) will make her international debut this weekend against Canada's Jade Delgado in the 51 kg weight division. Haro has won five consecutive bouts, including three USA Boxing national event titles. The American boxer won the 2025 USA Boxing International Open, 2025 National Summer Festival, and, most recently, the 2025 National Open. Her opponent is coming off a loss from the 2025 U23 Canadian National Championships, but is one of Canada's top prospects after competing at the 2024 World Boxing U19 Championships.
Marie-Angelis Rosendo (Deland, Fla.) is the other female competing for the USA, and she will look to bounce back after falling short in the gold medal bout at the 2025 World Boxing Challenge Grand Prix Usti Nad Labem. Rosendo earned a silver medal in the Czech Republic and represented the United States at the World Boxing Cup: Astana 2025, and will now face off against Canada’s Simran Takhar in the 60-kilogram weight class. Takhar was victorious at the 2025 U23 Canadian National Championships and will now make the leap to the international stage.
Moving on to the men's side, the USA will be represented by some of the USA's most anticipated boxers. Marcellus Smith (Cleveland, Ohio) currently represents Team USA on their Elite High Performance Squad after winning the 2024 USA Boxing National Championships. He will make his international debut against Karan Sembhi. Canada's 55-kilogram representative has a couple of international experiences, having represented Canada at the 2023 Pan American Championships and the 2025 International Boxing Independence Cup.
Salim Ellis-Bey (Philadelphia, Pa.) will represent the United States for the second time this year, but this time the Philadelphia native will be on the Elite stage. Ellis-Bey (60 kilograms) is coming off a dominant gold medal run at the 2025 Brandenburg Cup. He was named the captain of the 2025 USA Boxing Youth High Performance team and is now competing in his first elite bout this weekend. He will face Aayan Khokhar, who has won his last six bouts, according to Boxing Rec.
Next, Team USA's 65-kilogram representative, Marcus Luther (Washington, D.C.), will make his much-anticipated international debut against Gabriel Aly Ndiaye. Luther has won 10 consecutive bouts and has claimed multiple national titles in 2025, including the 2025 Summer Festival and the 2025 USA Boxing International Open. Ndiaye also competed at the 2025 USA Boxing International Open, defeating Team USA's Elite High Performance representative and 2025 Grand Prix Usti nad Labem bronze medalist, Rene Camacho. Luther has been a training partner for Team USA throughout 2025, but now will represent the United States for the first time in his career.
Finally, Joseph Awinongya will return to the international stage for the third time in his young boxing career. The 18-year-old is making the jump to the elite level after solidifying himself as one of the USA's most dominant contenders in Olympic-style boxing. Awinongya will travel to Canada with two gold medals, one from the 2024 World Boxing U19 Championships and the other from the 2025 Brandenburg Cup. He will square off with Umar Carcamo in the 80-kilogram weight class. Carcamo has won 15 of his last 16 bouts, according to Boxing Rec.
To watch the six United States boxers in action during Saturday’s Melee Gala X, fans can purchase the broadcast HERE.
United States’ Melee Gala X Roster:
51 kg: Noelle Haro | Austin, Texas
55 kg: Marcellus Smith | Cleveland, Ohio
60 kg: Marie-Angelis Rosendo | Deland, Fla.
60 kg: Salim Ellis-Bey | Philadelphia, Pa.
65 kg: Marcus Luther | Washington D.C.
80 kg: Joseph Awinongya | Joliet, Ill.
Edward Fonteneaux – Coach
Eric Zimmerman – Coach
