The best sports photos of 2020 from Getty Images

34. Olympic training in the desert

Olympic hopeful boxer Richard Torrez Jr. pushes a tractor tire over during a training session on June 6, 2020, in Tulare, California. Torrez Jr. was one of 13 boxers selected to represent Team USA at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games Boxing Qualifiers in Argentina, but the qualifier was canceled due to the coronavirus. The 20-year-old has won numerous international tournaments and is currently ranked fifth in the world in the super heavyweight weight class. The training center in Colorado is currently closed so Torrez Jr. continues to train at home with his father, who is his coach. His father has implemented many different types of training methods, such as hitting cement rocks with a sledge hammer, filling up wheel barrels with sand, and flipping over tractor tires. Athletes across the globe are now training in isolation under strict policies in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

I remember leaving my house around four o’clock in the morning to go visit Olympic hopeful boxer Richard Torrez Jr. as he trained at home during the pandemic. At this point in time, I didn’t feel comfortable staying at a hotel, but I still wanted to get to his house as early as possible to get the best light for the shoot. I was able to spend the entire day with Richard and his father, who is also a former boxer and his coach. The workout reminded me of an old Rocky movie, as Richard hit cement with a sledgehammer, shoveled sand back and forth and flipped massive tires outside his gym before going in for a workout with a punching bag.

— Ezra Shaw