U.S. boxing suffers another setback

BEIJING -- Less than 24 hours before he stepped in the ring Sunday night, Commerce teenager Javier Molina didn't know if he'd be able to compete in the Olympic boxing tournament.

"It's been one thing after another," U.S. Coach Dan Campbell said.

The last thing popped up Saturday morning when doctors discovered that Molina had a hole in his right lung.

"He wasn't cleared to box until 8 o'clock last night," Campbell said. "He had to lay around for about two days."

And as a result, a lethargic Molina proved no match for veteran Boris Georgiev of Bulgaria, who counterpunched his way to a 14-1 victory in a first-round light-welterweight bout on the second day of boxing at the Beijing Olympics.

"I felt kind of sluggish," said Molina, who never mentioned his medical problems. "I felt too slow. By the time I was in, he was out. And he kept counterpunching me."

Bill Kuprevich, physician for the U.S. boxing team, said Molina complained last week of a sore throat and strep. Saturday morning, after marching in Friday's opening ceremony, Molina felt worse and an EKG and chest X-rays were performed, which showed air had seeped from his lung and become trapped beneath the skin near Molina's right shoulder.

"It is fairly common," Kuprevich said of the condition, which is not life-threatening and will heal on its own. "Sometimes happens with infection, sometimes happens with trauma."

Kuprevich ruled out trauma but stopped short of blaming the condition on an infection.

In any case, it left Molina, at 18 the youngest member of the U.S. boxing team, weakened and winded.

"I knew what I had to do going in there. But I just didn't do it," he said. "I just wasn't really feeling too comfortable. I didn't feel like myself today."

And Georgiev, a seasoned boxer with a European championship and an Olympic bronze medal to his credit, took advantage from the opening bell, scoring the first eight points of the bout and running out to a 11-1 lead after three rounds.

"He did the best he could," Campbell said of Molina. "I think after the first round, it affected him a lot. It was a big difference to Javy tonight."

Molina is the second U.S. boxer who has had health issues in the last four days. Bantamweight Gary Russell Jr. collapsed Thursday in his dorm room, where he was found by teammate Luis Yanez. Russell had become dehydrated trying to make the 119-pound weight limit for his division and the team pulled him from the competition over concerns about his condition.

Molina said he'll stay in Beijing through the rest of the boxing tournament.

"I'm going to support all the other Olympians on the U.S. team," he said.

Beyond that, however, he's not sure. Molina comes from a boxing family: His father, uncle and oldest brother were all professional boxers and his twin brother, Oscar, made Mexico's Olympic team, although he didn't qualify for the Beijing Games.

So Molina will sit down with his parents and coach Roberto Luna to talk about whether he should take another shot at the Olympics in four years or turn pro.

"I'm not sure yet . . . what we want to do," he said. Turning pro "is one of the choices. But I'm not too sure yet."

Georgiev will fight Mongolia's Munkh-Erdene Uranchimeg, a 12-8 winner over Zambian Hastings Bwalya, in the second round Thursday.

kevin.baxter@latimes.com