Domination in America, Starting from being a Boxing Champion

The time came to August when Link, representing the United States boxing team, went to Han Jing to participate in the Olympic Games.

The Olympic boxing competition is divided into five rounds: elimination, preliminary, quarter-final, semi-final, and final matches. There were only 30 competitors in total, but they were all the strongest boxers from the four continents.

The elimination round was held on August 12 at the Capital City Workers Stadium. Link fought against Nobuhiro Ishida, a boxer from the East, and at the 86th second of the first round, he knocked down his opponent with a rear hook punch, causing the opponent to fall and remain down for ten seconds.

In the preliminaries, Link fought against the Irish competitor Darren Sutherland, knocking down his opponent five times in four rounds and causing him to fall to the ground for several seconds thrice. Link successfully advanced to the quarter-finals with an amateur record reaching 24 fights, 24 wins, and 24 KOs.

In the quarter-finals, Link fought against the Kazakhstani boxer Altayev, the super middleweight champion of the previous Athens Olympics, a boxer whose defensive skills were not inferior to Pitts, and who was very strong.

However, Link had significantly increased his punching power and refined his technique during the past month of training. In the fourth round, he continued to knock down his opponent three times, causing the referee to call a halt to the match, as the opponent was down for several seconds. Link won another match.

In the semi-finals, Link faced a challenge from the British boxer James DeGale.

James DeGale is black, with a height of 188 centimeters and a reach of 196 centimeters. His technique is exquisite, and his physical condition is also excellent, resembling a combination of Pitts and Andzeje. Despite Link knocking down his opponent four times within four rounds, the match still did not end with a complete KO.

He won the match with a score of 31:19.

This was the only fight in all of Link's amateur competitions that he didn't win by a KO.

And in the final, Link encountered his old rival, the Cuban boxer Lorenzo Aragon.

Because their past match had caused a sensation in the world of boxing, many believed that Aragon had not performed well, leading to his loss to Link, and a rematch's outcome was unpredictable.

Hence, the match was highly anticipated by boxing fans all over the world, and the Huaxia TV sports channel broadcasted it live.

However, the progress of the match was unexpected. Link immediately used heavy punches to attack Aragon's defense right after the start, throwing 124 punches in the first round and knocking down Aragon once in the last 10 seconds.

In the second round, the match was almost entirely one-sided. Link continued with heavy punches, knocking down Aragon twice and causing him to stay down for several seconds. Before the beginning of the third round, the Cuban side announced their withdrawal from the match, using Aragon's unhealed injury as an excuse.

Link easily won the final and secured the Olympic gold medal.

On August 25, Link returned to the United States by plane. When he stepped out of Los Angeles International Airport, more than a hundred media reporters were waiting outside the terminal. With his assistant Simon orchestrating, Link held a press conference in the airport's main hall.

"Mr. Link Baker, congratulations on winning the Olympic championship and securing a highly prestigious gold medal. This gold medal is also the only one that the US boxing team has won at this Olympics. How do you feel right now?"

A reporter from the Los Angeles Times asked, passing over the microphone.

"It's great, just like the weather in Los Angeles."

Link pointed to the blue sky above, smiling. At the moment, he was dressed in red and white Nike sportswear, with a gold medal adorned with jade hanging around his neck. It featured the boxing emblem and his name, weighing a total of 219.3 grams, feeling quite heavy around his neck.

But his mood was very relaxed.

This trip back home was not only for the Olympics; he also took some time to travel near his hometown. His parents were in good health, his siblings were still in school, and it seemed as if the Lin Family didn't have a child named Link.

Coach Lao Liu was still coaching at the city boxing team, and without any involvement from him, Liu would probably be able to retire peacefully in the city team.

Seeing everyone doing well, naturally, his mood was quite good.

"Mr. Link Baker, how was your first trip to Huaxia?"

The Los Angeles Times reporter continued to ask.

"It was fantastic. The cities in Huaxia are also bustling, and the people in Huaxia are very warm and hospitable. I've made many friends during my time in Huaxia,"

Link replied with a smile.

"Mr. Link Baker, three days ago Huaxia media reported that you saved a child from drowning in Han Jing Park. Is that true?"

A CBS television reporter asked, passing over the microphone.

"Yes, I just happened to be passing by, and I helped out."

"Mr. Link Baker, according to Huaxia media reports, the 200-meter medley champion Phelps and a former Huaxia diving champion were also at the scene. All three of you dived into the water at almost the same time, but you reached the child first. How did you manage that?"

The CBS television reporter asked.

"I live by the sea, and my swimming skills are pretty good. As for swimming faster than them, that's probably a misunderstanding,"

Link said, spreading his hands.

Three days before the finals, he was jogging near the back sea when he suddenly heard someone shouting, "Someone's fallen into the water!" So, he didn't think much and just jumped in. After rescuing the child, he didn't stick around and went straight back to the dorm to change clothes.

The evening news on CCTV reported the incident, and there was a video taken right as he jumped into the water, with Phelps, who was also running nearby, and Tian Liang from the former Huaxia diving team.

All three dived into the water almost simultaneously, yet Link, who was further away from the drowning child, reached him first.

After the news broke, it became one of the biggest and most interesting stories of the Olympics. Since he was also wearing athletic clothing and had quite a distinctive look and build, it didn't take long for people to expose his real identity—Link Baker from the United States boxing team.

Then, the news got even more exciting with stories about the diving champion, swimming champion, and boxing champion jumping into the water to rescue a drowning child, with the boxing champion reaching the child first despite being farther away.

People started to believe he was a hidden swimming master.

Boxing fans also joked that he was a knockout maniac, an anesthetist, suggesting that he must have K.O.'d the other two in the water before bringing the child to shore, because how else could a boxer be faster than a swimming champion?

"Mr. Link Baker, Phelps has publicly stated he wants to race you again to see who swims faster. Will you accept his challenge?"

asked an ABC television reporter.

Link chuckled and said to the camera, "Of course, but please tell him if he loses, he should leave the gold medal behind. He has eight of them, and I'm quite envious."

"Okay! We will let him know,"

the ABC television reporter laughed in response.

"Mr. Link Baker, many people believed the final match would be evenly matched. Why did you defeat Aragon in just three rounds?"

asked an HBO television reporter.

"First of all, it wasn't an evenly matched fight. I had beaten him before in the qualifiers, I am stronger than him; secondly, Aragon was injured and in a worse condition than in July, making him weaker, and third, I went through over a month of intensified training before the Olympics. I was stronger than at the qualifiers, which is also why I could defeat him again,"

Link answered.

"Mr. Link Baker, after becoming world champion, what is your next goal?"

asked a New York Times reporter.

"Next, I will move to professional boxing to fight for the super middleweight world titles of the four major organizations and become the true world champion,"

Link said, waving his fist.

After answering a dozen questions, Link gave Simon a look, prompting Simon to step forward and announce that the interview was over as the champion needed to rest now.

——

"Link, take a look at your itinerary for the coming days,"

in the business car, Simon Curtis handed him a bottle of purified water, and then a schedule.

"Alright, let me see what jobs you've lined up for me,"

Link said as he took the schedule and flipped through it.

It listed over thirty work schedules, including appearances on CBS's "The Ellen Show," NBC's late-night talk show "The Tonight Show," exclusive interviews with the Los Angeles Times, the New York Times, People Magazine, "Boxing Ring" magazine, and the HBO show "Follow the Champion to Watch Boxing," as well as six commercial ads, and three charity events.

"Link, after your championship win, we've received over fifty advertising offers. According to your request, we've rejected any ads offering less than half a million dollars, leaving these six. The three charity events are optional, but my recommendation is to do them, as it can expand your fan base and increase your exposure,"

Simon advised.

"I understand,"

Link replied. He had no objection to doing charity work; with his own past filled with scandals, engaging in charitable activities could help reshape public perception through television appearances, allowing audiences to get to know his character and behavior. If done well, it could wash away some of his past negative image, converting critics and casual observers into fans.

"What's this 'Follow the Champion to Watch the Olympics' show about? The Olympics are over, so what's left to watch?"

Link pointed to the HBO activity in the schedule, which required three days of recording and was the longest one among all the activities.

"This is a show HBO has tailored especially for you. Considering your popularity and your Olympic gold medal, they plan to create a program where you'll commentate on the five rounds of Olympic boxing live. HBO is offering you half a million US dollars for it,"

Simon explained.

"Sounds good, I'll take it,"

Link nodded, set down the document, and looked out at Los Angeles through the car window—the sun was shining, the ocean and beaches were blue and gold, and palm trees lined the Pacific Coast Highway, reminding him of Miami.

He took out his phone and texted Taylor to ask if her tour had ended. After a while, Taylor replied saying it would be another half month before she returned to the country.

Link didn't mention he was in Los Angeles and sent a message to Gal Gadot, who responded that she was at home and sent him the address of an apartment.

"Simon, head to the White Oak Apartments on Byrd Street!"n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om