Jubilant boxer David De Pina secures the first-ever Olympic medal for Cape Verde

VILLEPINTE, France (AP) — Cape Verde boxer David De Pina clinched his island nation's first Olympic medal with a quarterfinal victory Friday in the boxing tournament at the Paris Games.

Cape Verde, a nation of about 600,000 people on 10 isles more than 300 miles west of continental Africa, had never taken home a medal in its previous seven appearances in the Olympics.

But De Pina has won twice in the men's 51-kilogram division in Paris to secure at least a bronze medal — and a monumental achievement for sports in his country.

“I did it for my country because we deserve it,” De Pina said. “We are a small country, a small island, and we never did this before. I'm the first one to write this story, ever! I felt the support my country gave to me, and we deserve it because we've been through rough moments to get here.”

De Pina beat Zambia's Patrick Chinyemba on Friday night in an extraordinary showdown between boxers from African nations. Chinyemba, the African champion and a Commonwealth Games bronze medalist, fell just short of winning only the third Olympic medal in his much larger nation's history.

But Chinyemba simply couldn't solve De Pina, who has been a thrilling presence in the Paris ring. He combines his athleticism with a versatile, intelligent style of fighting that has flummoxed his opponents.

And De Pina is quick to point out that he also looks great doing it: His long hair is gathered into two balls on the sides of his head — “like Mickey Mouse!” he said with a laugh.

Several members of his Cape Verde team and fan base wore their hair in the same style while watching him beat Chinyemba. They celebrated afterward together, with the team and fans picking up De Pina and throwing him in the air repeatedly.

De Pina said his coach suggested the hairstyle to differentiate himself from other African fighters who typically wear their hair in braids. De Pina wants to stand out — and that's exactly what he has done with his skills.

After the decision, De Pina went to the center of the Olympic boxing ring and repeatedly leaped skyward, seemingly capable of touching the roof of the North Paris Arena amid the joy of his life-altering achievement.

De Pina also fought at the Tokyo Olympics, but he said he nearly gave up boxing in the years before the Paris Olympic cycle. He left home to train in Portugal but struggled to provide for his young family without being able to keep a steady job in construction.

De Pina persevered, and he sealed another Olympic berth with an impressive run of four consecutive victories at the qualifying tournament in Bangkok earlier this year. He credits his new training under well-known coach Bruno de Carvalho for his success.

“He is the engineer of all my fights,” De Pina said. “He didn't sleep. Every night, he was studying the game. I just do what he tells me to do. Africans are strong, but we beat them with our strength of mind.”

De Pina was one of his nation's two flagbearers at the opening ceremonies in Paris, and he is thoroughly enjoying his successful run. That run gets much more difficult in his next bout on Sunday, when he must fight Rio gold medalist Hasanboy Dusmatov of Uzbekistan in the semifinals.

No matter what happens, De Pina has made history.

“I showed the world that we are small, but we are strong and we are talented,” De Pina said.

AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games

Cabo Verde's David De Pina hits Zambia's Patrick Chinyemba in their men's 51 kg quarterfinal boxing match at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Friday, Aug. 2, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Cabo Verde's David De Pina celebrates after defeating Zambia's Patrick Chinyemba in their men's 51 kg quarterfinal boxing match at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Friday, Aug. 2, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Zambia's Patrick Chinyemba hits Cabo Verde's David De Pina in their men's 51 kg quarterfinal boxing match at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Friday, Aug. 2, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Cabo Verde's David De Pina celebrates after defeating Zambia's Patrick Chinyemba in their men's 51 kg quarterfinal boxing match at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Friday, Aug. 2, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Cabo Verde's David De Pina celebrates after defeating Zambia's Patrick Chinyemba in their men's 51 kg quarterfinal boxing match at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Friday, Aug. 2, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Cabo Verde's David De Pina celebrates after defeating Zambia's Patrick Chinyemba in their men's 51 kg quarterfinal boxing match at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Friday, Aug. 2, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Cabo Verde's David De Pina celebrates after defeating Zambia's Patrick Chinyemba in their men's 51 kg quarterfinal boxing match at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Friday, Aug. 2, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

NEW YORK (AP) — The longtime host of “The Late Show with David Letterman” found himself answering questions rather than asking them when a federal judge in New York City put the entertainer through an audition of sorts on Monday for a possible role as a juror in a criminal trial.

It was the serious setting of a criminal trial over a cryptocurrency fraud when Judge P. Kevin Castel confronted the famous bearded comedian, identified in court only as “Juror 16,” with questions just as he did three dozen other potential jurors to determine who would be on a panel of 12 jurors and four alternates.

The prospective jurors had already survived a general round of questioning in which individuals are dismissed for hardship reasons, such as medical issues or jobs from which they cannot be spared. The trial is expected to last less than two weeks.

When Letterman, who stepped down from his show in 2015, made it to what could be the final round for admittance on the jury, the judge lobbed a softball: “Where do you live?”

“Hartford,” Letterman responded, proving that he couldn't make it through a single word without delivering a joke.

“No, it's a joke,” Letterman quickly let the judge know. Hartford is in Connecticut, which would have disqualified him from the jury because it is outside the area where jurors are drawn from.

“Nice try,” the judge responded, adding, “You figured you would forgo Queens,” another location outside the area covered by the Southern District of New York. Queens is located in the Eastern District of New York.

After Letterman revealed his true area of residence — Westchester County — the pair began a volley of questions and answers totaling nearly three dozen exchanges.

Along the way, the judge, lawyers and three dozen or so prospective jurors learned a lot that the world already knows about Letterman. He was born in Indianapolis, obtained a degree from Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, and has a 20-year-old son in college in Massachusetts.

Asked what he does for a living, Letterman said he was currently “working for a company called Netflix.”

“Spouse or significant other?” Castel asked.

“I've had both. Currently I just have the spouse,” Letterman responded.

Asked how he gets his news, Letterman gave a nod to the past, saying: “Every morning I used to pick up the paper off the front porch. Now, I turn on the computer and it's an aggregation of news sources from all over the United States and around the world.”

Asked what he likes to watch besides any Netflix programs he's involved with, Letterman said, “I like sports.”

“I'm happy football is here. I'm happy it's this time in the baseball season. I like motor sports. I like pretty much what most Americans watch on TV,” he said.

The judge asked him if he's an Indianapolis Colts football fan.

“Big Colts fan. 0 and 2, but still a fan,” he said, referring to the fact that the Colts have lost their first two games this season.

For hobbies, Letterman said he likes to fish, ski and be outdoors.

“Ever called as a juror?” the judge asked.

“Been called many times. Just couldn't make it happen,” Letterman answered.

“You know, this may be the charm,” Castel said, aware that Letterman had a 50-50 chance to make it onto the panel.

“It would be a pleasure,” Letterman said.

In the end, shortly before the jury was sworn in, Letterman was ejected when a prosecutor exercised what is known as a “strike,” which allows lawyers on either side to release a certain number of potential jurors from the panel for any reason at all. It was the third of four strikes exercised by prosecutors. No reason was given.

David Letterman arrives at federal court in New York, Monday Sept. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah)

David Letterman arrives at federal court in New York, Monday Sept. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah)

David Letterman arrives at federal court in New York, Monday Sept. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah)

David Letterman arrives at federal court in New York, Monday Sept. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah)

David Letterman arrives at federal court in New York, Monday Sept. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah)