BOISE, Idaho — The City of Caldwell is set to celebrate Olympian Alyssa Mendoza with a homecoming parade and reception on the heels of her historic run inside the ring in Paris.
The parade begins at 12 p.m. Friday, Aug. 16, at Caldwell Fire Department Station 1 – located at 310 South 7th Avenue. The parade will turn on South 5th Avenue and again on Main Street, before ending at Indian Creek Steakhouse.
A reception and meet and greet for Team USA's youngest boxer will be held at the steakhouse Friday, with a special presentation from Caldwell Mayor Jarom Wagoner. A parade route map from the City of Caldwell is included below.
“We are so excited to welcome Alyssa home," Wagoner said. "She is an absolute hometown hero, and we want to show her how proud we are of her and all her accomplishments, and we cannot wait to see what she will achieve in the future."
Mendoza became the first female Olympic boxer from Idaho this summer, two years after graduating from Middleton High School. She punched her ticket to Paris by winning all four of her bouts by unanimous decision at the second World Qualification Tournament in Thailand.
The 20-year-old featherweight star opened the 2024 Paris Games by defeating Mijgona Samadova of Tajikistan in a 3-2 split decision July 30. Mendoza's Olympic debut ended with a 4-1 split decision loss to two-time Olympian Jucielen Cerqueira Romeu (Brazil) in the women's 57 kg round of 16.
Mendoza, who grew up in Caldwell, generated support from around the Gem State and beyond while competing on the world's biggest stage. The community filled Indian Creek Steakhouse for morning watch parties during both of her Olympic bouts.
In December 2019, Mendoza became the first female from Idaho to earn a spot on the Youth National Team after winning her weight class at the U.S. Youth National Championship. After graduating from Middleton, she moved to Colorado Springs by herself to further her career at the US Olympic Training Center.
With her sights set on Paris, the qualifying process dealt blow after blow. Mendoza lost in Chile at the Pan American Games, then came up short at the world qualifier in Italy in March.
It left her with one last chance to advance, but it would require a perfect performance at the second Olympic Games World Qualifying Tournament in Thailand. Mendoza did just that in late May with four-straight wins by unanimous decision, including the finale over Maud Van Der Toorn from the Netherlands.
