Carlos Balderas, 19, first to qualify for U.S. Olympic men's boxing team

Lightweight Carlos Balderas on Monday became the first American male boxer to qualify for the 2016 Rio Olympics.

The announcement came at a news conference for the Olympic Trials for Men's Boxing in Reno.

Balderas, 19, who started boxing when he was seven, qualified through his finish in Season Six of the World Series of Boxing. A former Junior and Youth Open champion, Balderas won his spot on the United States' World Series of Boxing team through a top finish at the WSB and World Championships Team Trial in December.

He not only won gold in his first elite division event, defeating much older and experienced boxers on his way to the title, but was also named Outstanding Boxer of the event. A product of a boxing family, Balderas is trained by his father Xenon and his uncle David. His older brother Jose also competes in the sport.

"Making the Olympic team is a dream come true for me and my family. I've always believed that when it comes to your dreams, every risk is worth it," Balderas said. "My uncle, my dad and I have spent so many years working toward this goal and I can't wait to represent the United States next summer in Rio de Janeiro. I'm going to make my family and my country proud."

Balderas is the first American boxer to qualify for the Olympic Games through the World Series of Boxing and also represented the United States at the Pan American Games in July. Balderas received the Olympic allocation from AIBA (International Boxing Association) after two of the athletes ahead of him in the final WSB season standings qualified for the 2016 Olympic Games via top finishes at the 2015 Elite Men's World Championships in October.

The 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials for Men's Boxing will take place December 7-12 in Reno to determine who will represent the United States in the other nine male weight divisions at the international Olympic qualifying tournaments.

On the women's side, flyweight Virginia Fuchs, lightweight Mikaela Mayer and 2012 Olympic gold medalist Claressa Shields won the Olympic Trials last month.

Eleven Balderas family members made the eight-hour drive from Santa Maria, Calif., with him to share in the special day more than a decade in the making.

"The funny thing is that the reason that they first took me to the boxing gym was for punishment. I was getting in to the fights and getting in to trouble and so they took me to the boxing gym so another kid could whoop on me and straighten me out," Balderas said. "The other kid actually had some experience and it was my first time in a boxing gym but it actually went the other way around. They asked if I had boxed before and I told them that I hadn't and we realized that I'm just a natural born fighter."

The 2016 U.S. Olympic Boxing Team is subject to approval by the United States Olympic Committee.