Claressa Shields

Claressa Maria Shields was born and raised in Flint, Michigan. Her father, Bo Shields, introduced her to boxing after discussing Laila Ali, although he initially believed boxing was a men's sport and did not allow Shields to pursue it until she was 11.

She began training at Flint's Berston Field House, where she met coach and trainer Jason Crutchfield. Shields has also credited her grandmother, Joanne Adams, with encouraging her not to accept restrictions based on her gender.

Shields won the middleweight division at the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials after defeating Franchón Crews-Dezurn, Andrecia Wasson and Tika Hemingway. At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, she won gold at age 17 by defeating Russia's Nadezda Torlopova. The victory made her the first American woman to win an Olympic boxing gold medal.

She defended her Olympic title at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games, defeating Nouchka Fontijn in the final. Her consecutive Olympic victories made her the first American boxer to win back-to-back Olympic titles. Shields also won gold at the 2014 and 2016 World Championships and the 2015 Pan American Games, and finished her amateur career with 77 wins and one loss.

Shields turned professional in November 2016 and won her debut against Franchón Crews-Dezurn. In 2017, she defeated Nikki Adler to win the WBC and IBF super middleweight titles, then became a two-weight world champion in her sixth professional bout by defeating Hanna Gabriels for middleweight titles. Her 2017 bout against Szilvia Szabados was the first women's boxing match to headline a United States premium network card.

In April 2019, Shields defeated Christina Hammer to become the undisputed middleweight champion. She became the fastest boxer in history to win world titles in three weight classes when she defeated Ivana Habazin in January 2020, and in March 2021 she became the first boxer in the four-belt era to hold undisputed titles in two divisions.

Shields regained the undisputed middleweight championship by defeating Savannah Marshall in October 2022. She later moved through light heavyweight and heavyweight, stopping Vanessa Lepage-Joanisse in 2024. In February 2025, she defeated Danielle Perkins to become the first female undisputed heavyweight champion and the only three-division undisputed champion of the four-belt era.

Shields signed with the Professional Fighters League in 2020 and began training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and mixed martial arts. She also trained at Jackson Wink MMA Academy and worked with Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion Roberto Alencar.

She made her MMA debut against Brittney Elkin at PFL 4 in June 2021 and won by third-round technical knockout. Shields lost to Abigail Montes by split decision later that year, then defeated Kelsey DeSantis by split decision in February 2024. Their bout in Saudi Arabia was the first professional MMA contest in the country featuring two women. Shields announced her MMA retirement in May 2025.

Shields was raised in Flint and has spoken about the importance of her Christian faith. She became involved with Up2Us Sports as an ambassador for underserved youth and has advocated for greater visibility and gender equality in sports, particularly women's boxing.

Flint honored Shields by renaming a street after her in June 2022. Her relationship with rapper Papoose became public in 2024, and they were seen together at Hawaii Fest in 2025.

Shields is the subject of the 2015 documentary T-Rex: Her Fight for Gold, which follows her pursuit of an Olympic boxing gold medal. Universal Pictures acquired the rights to a film about her life in 2016, and The Fire Inside was released in 2024, with Ryan Destiny portraying Shields.

Her screen credits also include Lola 2, BET Her Presents: The Waiting Room and the television series James Roan Series. Shields served as an executive producer on The Fire Inside and appeared in a Walmart advertisement directed by Dee Rees.