Boston Bomber Tamerlan Tsarnaev Attempted to Become Olympic Boxer for US

From ESPN:

At one point, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, the alleged Boston Marathon bomber who was killed Thursday night, was an aspiring boxer who said "I like the USA" after a successful bout and had dreams of boxing for the U.S. Olympic team.

According to the Lowell Sun, Tsarnaev, who came to the U.S. from Chechnya in in 2003, won a Golden Gloves novice fight at the 178-pound weight division in January 2004.

"I wanted to fight in the Gloves to see how I would do," Tsarnaev said at the time, according to the Sun. "So far, so good."
He added, according to the Sun: "I like the USA ... America has a lot of jobs. That's something Russia doesn't have. You have a chance to make money here if you are willing to work."

Tsarnaev continued his boxing career. According to multiple media reports, he took part in a number of regional bouts and, according to the Sun, won the prestigious Rocky Marciano Trophy as the New England heavyweight champ a number of years later.