My name is Ishé Oluwa Kamau Ali Smith and I’m a letter carrier in Las Vegas.
I started working for the Postal Service in 2020. I was previously a professional boxer with 29 career wins and 11 losses.
In 2013, I made history as the first fighter born in Nevada to win the International Boxing Federation championship. That year, Feb. 23 was proclaimed Ishé “Sugar Shay” Smith Day in Las Vegas.
My interest in boxing began when I was 8. I was really small for my age. I was bullied by other kids and got beaten up on a daily basis. As soon as the bell rang at the end of the school day, I would run home to avoid the bullies. That was a dark time for me.
Today, I’m an outspoken advocate against bullying in all forms and have worked with an anti-bullying organization.
My mom had a friend who was into boxing and he started teaching me how to protect myself. I stared going to a boxing gym. Later, as an amateur boxer, I made the finals of the U.S. National Championships in 1996 and made the semifinals of the U.S. Olympic trials.
My first professional fight was in 2000 in Tunica, MS. The fight was televised. I won by a knockout. It was a great night for me. I was on cloud nine.
In 2005, I appeared on “The Contender,” an NBC reality show. Working with hosts Sylvester Stallone and Sugar Ray Leonard, and producer Mark Burnett, was one of the highlights of my career.
I formed a brotherhood with all 16 contestants, a brotherhood that will last a lifetime. Today, I still get recognized from being on the show, which amazes me because it aired almost two decades ago.
My last professional fight was in 2019.
These days, I’m focused on my family. I have a fiancee and six kids, including two who have graduated college and another who will start college in the fall.
I’m being inducted in the Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame in August. When I found out, I cried like a baby for hours. There are special events, things that happen once in a lifetime, and this is truly an unforgettable blessing.
It’s been a long journey, but now I can finally close the chapter on that part of my life.
“Off the Clock,” a column on Postal Service employees and their after-hours pursuits, appears regularly in Link.
