Sue Jaye Johnson

Claressa Shields, an American boxer, returns to the Olympics this summer after she won a gold medal as a 17 year old in 2012, during the first ever women's Olympic boxing competition.

I was daunted by the task of leaving and also feeling the pull of home and neighbors in need. We stayed as long as we could and I am grateful for the chance to live not just amo...

Only three boxers made the first ever US Women's Olympic Boxing Team. Many tried. They gave up jobs, quit school, moved across the country to train with top coaches. Sue Jaye Johnson spent the year following their quest to make history. These are some of the photographs she took along the way.

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A chance to box in the 2012 Olympic Games has brought more women than ever before to the seventh Women's World Boxing Championship in Qinhuangdao, China. The tournament's three Olympic weight classes are packed with competitors -- 77 countries have invested time and money in hopes that their female fighters can make it to the Games in London. But some of the most impressive women in Qinhuangdao are not fighting for a spot in London. That includes six members of Team USA, who lost the battle to fight in the Olympics at the US team trials in February. Now, plus or minus a few pounds, they are fighting in the World Championships to show they can't be stopped.

Boxing has been a staple of the summer Olympics since 1904. But for the first time ever, women will step into the ring and compete for the gold in this year's London games. And the lead-up to the main event promises to be just as intense: there are 24 contenders but only three spots on the U.S. Women's Olympic Boxing Team.