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Jennifer “The Bolivian Queen”
Salinas, the former World
Boxing Federation (WBF) Womens
World Super Bantamweight
Champion, was born to a Bolivian
father and a North American
mother on June 30, 1982 in
Annandale, Virginia, USA.
Not much was pointing in the
direction of her becoming a
world class boxer, or athlete in
general, until she discovered
her talent for fighting at the
age of nineteen. She had her
first bout and won the Michigan
Golden Gloves that same year,
2001.
In 2002 Salinas won the USA
nationals, and it soon became
apparent that she was ready to
turn professional. In May of
2003 she entered the paid ranks,
and won her debut by decision
over Nicole Beard (1-4) in Grand
Rapids.
By March of 2005, Salinas had
put together five straight
victories, including one over
the very capable Sharon Gaines
(5-2), when she suffered her
first set-back, losing a
unanimous decision to fellow
prospect Heather Percival (5-1).
Between November 2005 and
September 2009, Salinas racked
up another six victories. All
low profile, but on decent-sized
cards, and she continued to
learn her trade in the ring. So
it was a surprise when she, at
11-1 (4), lost what was supposed
to be another learning fight to
Nathalie Forget (2-1) in July
2010.
Despite the unexpected loss, she
never the less was picked to
challenge for the Interim WBC
World Super Bantamweight title
against reigning champion, and
massive favorite, Jackie Nava
(22-3-2) in Mexico four months
later.
Salinas took the big
opportunity, fighting outside
the USA for the first time, and
showed she had the skills and
determination to compete at
world level, despite losing a
wide unanimous decision to the
much more experienced local
heroine.
While the effort against Nava
surely boosted her self-belief,
it would be almost two years
before Salinas returned to the
ring in July 2012,
comprehensively out-scoring
former WBO world
title-challenger Angel Gladney
(7-5-1).
A string of three clear-cut
victories put her back in world
title-contention, and it was big
news in Bolivia when it was
announced she would fight there,
in her fathers birth-country,
for the first time, with the
vacant WBF world title on the
line on November 11, 2013.
In a huge event at the Estadio
Ramon Tahuici Aguilera in Santa
Cruz, Salinas beat former world
champion Yollis Marrugo Franco
(15-8-3) from Colombia, losing
only one round on each scorecard
on her way to the biggest
triumph of her career.
The significance of Salinas
winning the WBF Womens World
Super Bantamweight title, was
underlined by the fact that it
prompted Bolivian President Evo
Morales to invite her to the
presidential palace in La Paz,
where he awarded her a special
medal to commemorate her
achievement.
Unfortunately a long spell of
inactivity followed for Salinas,
and she was officially stripped
of the WBF world title, without
defending it, when she moved up
to Super Featherweight in early
2015.
In November of 2016 she lost a
challenge for the IBF World
title in her new weight class,
dropping a competitive decision
to Maiva Hamadouche (13-1) in
France.
In June of 2017 Salinas returned
with a routine victory, and so
far that has been her last
fight. At 37 years of age she
obviously still has time for
another comeback, but if that
doesn't happen she retires with
a fine record of 20-4 (5).
A mother of four children, she
currently lives in Bristow,
Virginia, where she uses her
fame from being a world champion
boxer to help victims of
violence and sexual violence,
especially children, in the
local Latino community.
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