USA Boxing Youth High Performance Team Travels to Thailand for 2026 World Boxing Futures Cup

The USA Boxing Youth High Performance Team is traveling to Bangkok, Thailand, for the 2026 World Boxing Futures Cup. This event marks the first international competition of the year for the 2026 USA Boxing Youth High Performance Team. The United States will see 17 Youth High Performance boxers, nine males and eight females, hit the ring throughout the week-long World Boxing event, which is slated to begin on Sunday, March 8.

USA Boxing is excited to see all 17 boxers competing on the international stage next week, 15 of whom will make their international debuts with the Stars and Stripes. Of the 17 athletes named to the 2026 Youth High Performance Team, team captains Angel Blancarte (men’s 85 kg | Hutchinson, Kan.) and Lauryn Elmore (women’s 65 kg | Sacramento, Calif.) are the lone returners on the roster. Blancarte and Elmore enter their second year on the United States Youth national team after securing bronze medals at the 2025 Brandenburg Cup in Germany.

"We’re feeling great,” Elmore stated as Team USA travels to Bangkok for the 2026 World Boxing Futures Cup. “This is a new experience, and we’re ready to own our time competing over here in Bangkok, Thailand. This team has the tenacity and skill to win gold, and that is what we all will do with this opportunity in front of us.”

As for the 15 boxers making their international debuts in Thailand, Marley McNealy (San Francisco, Calif.) will represent Team USA in the women’s 70-kilogram weight division after winning titles in three USA Boxing National Events in 2025, including the 2025 USA Boxing National Championships, which marked her jump from the Junior division to the Youth division. On the Men’s side, Christian Paez (men’s 55 kg | San Antonio, Texas) will make his international debut after an impressive 2025, during which he won the USA Boxing National Open and the USA Boxing National Championships.

Joining Blancarte and Paez on the Men’s team is Refugio Veloz (men’s 50 kg | Atwater, Calif.), David Arrieta (men’s 60 kg | Kansas City, Mo.), Asaan Jenkins (men’s 65 kg | Washington, D.C.), Asante Lamar (men’s 70 kg | Cincinnati, Ohio), James Gentile (men’s 75 kg | Staten Island, N.Y.), Hadi Almashhadi (men’s 80 kg | Taylor, Mich.), and Caleb Reid (men’s 90+ kg | Palm Bay, Fla.)

Rounding out the Women’s Team are Ciana Nonhphala (women’s 48 kg | Providence, R.I.), Ruby Lopez (women’s 51 kg | Napa, Calif.), Guadalupe Ruiz (women’s 54 kg | Anaheim, Calif.), Brijhana Epperson (women’s 57 kg | Kansas City, Mo.), Kaylee Aguilar (women’s 60 kg | Houston, Texas) and Ariana Chavez (women’s 75 kg | Rio Rancho, N.M.).

Competition at the 2026 World Boxing Futures Cup will begin on Sunday, March 8, and end on Sunday, March 15. Tournament brackets and daily bout sheets will be announced by World Boxing on Saturday, March 7, after the conclusion of the tournament draw.

The USA Boxing Youth High Performance Team is led by National Development Coach Edward Fonteneaux (Fayetteville, N.C.). Fonteneaux will be assisted throughout the year by High Performance Pool coaches, including Holly Gregson (Idaho Falls, Idaho), Jason Hamilton (Spanaway, Wash.), Yessenia Montalvo (Bloomfield, N.J.), and Ronald Wright (Columbus, Ga.).

Additional tournament information for the 2026 World Boxing Futures Cup, including the tournament draw, daily bout sheets, results, tournament updates, and more, will be uploaded to the event page on the USA Boxing website, where followers can find the 2026 World Boxing Futures Cup event page.