Zackary Canepari

Claressa and Briana Shields. Sisters. Claressa is older by 2 years. Both of them are from Flint, Michigan, a place known for struggle. Their dad was in jail until they were teenagers. Their mother battles with substance abuse. In a sense, typical Flint upbringing. Except for one difference. When she was 11, Claressa went to the local boxing gym and started training. 9 years later, she is the greatest female boxer in the world and the first women to win the Gold Medal in Women’s Boxing at the Olympics. She was 17 years old. Now Claressa is 20 and is training to go back to the Olympics in 2016. I made a documentary film about her called “T-Rex” and have been photographing her for over 3 years now. That brings us to Briana. In the film, Briana says “Claressa is my better half.” Briana is the worse half. Briana is Claressa without boxing. Trouble just finds her. Fights. Drugs. Sex. While Claressa works toward her second gold medal, Briana is pregnant for the second time. She’s on welfare. She’s a high school dropout. Her baby's father is in prison. She turns 19 years old next month. While Briana’s situation is terrible, she isn’t a martyr. She’s tough and street-wise. Flint is just a place for people to get stuck and Briana is stuck. They are alternate universe versions of each other. One is chaos. One is order. These 10 images is a document of their lives over the last three years.