This Stockton teen is already a national boxing champ—and she's just getting started
STOCKTON — This Hispanic Heritage Month, we are ringside highlighting an extraordinary athlete from the 209.
Stockton is known for producing some of the toughest fighters in mixed martial arts and boxing, but the newest crop of young fighters is already blowing past the competition.
At just 14, Faith Gomez is already a national champ—and she's just getting started.
In a class all her own, Gomez, born and raised in Stockton, loves to box. Her belts, medals and titles hanging in her home are a true testament of her unmatched skills.
"This is my favorite, when I won gold in Lousiana," she said while showing us her hardware. "I like that one because that's where all of my hard work came in."
The young fighter is ambitious, proven and humble. She's a homegrown talent who trains in her garage in Stockton, surrounded by her family who train her and a community that embraces her.
"I could be in my own mind and say, 'Man, I can do this all by myself,' but at the end of the day, you need help," she said.
The man behind her success—her dad, Simon, who once trained in mixed martial arts—started training her at only 10 years old.
"I put it off for about five years. At 5 years old, she bugged me," he said. "Boxing was the only thing."
Simon continued, "This is all she wanted to do. She's been pushing from the jump and she hasn't missed a day since."
Even when she's in school, at Stockton Early College Academy, boxing is always on her mind.
"Just like boxing, I'm focused when it comes down to it," Faith said of her education. "I do mess around a little, you know, but that's the normal student thing you know? It's high school."
Faith may look like a typical 14-year-old, but behind that teenage smile, she's evolved into a true fighter—tough, resilient and disciplined.
"She watches what she eats, trains, wakes up at 3, trains at 4, goes to school, trains again with coach," Simon said.
With the moniker "The Mexican American Dream," it's something she hopes to embody in boxing.
"I bring a lot of that Mexican fighting game, straight-forward pressure," Faith said.
It has become her life's passion.
"Bring my culture with me, what my parents worked for, what their parents worked for," she said.\With no signs of slowing down, Faith and her family have her goals set high.
"My dream is probably to be on the stage with thousands of people," she said.
"'We're going to be the best we can be, get the best coaches. We're going to sacrifice a lot of things if you want this,' and she's only accepted it," Dad said. "Sometimes, I forget she's only 14."
Since winning the national championship, she's ranked number 1 amongst her age group. Her next stop is deciding between the Olympics and going pro. Her dad said all of it is within reach.