The Waterbury Democrat., 1946-08-13
Today's Sport Parade
By OSCAR FRALEY

New OrK, Aug. lo. tOT)-1 ollliilS Gomez is a bull-shouldered young man whose tawny skin is. branded with the angry blue souvenirs of shellfire-which is why he isn't scared" of any man with gloves.
 Tommy is the Purple Heart hero from Tampa, Fla, who fights Jer- sey Joe Walcott in Friday nights main event at Madison Square Garden. He appeared once before in the big arena and lost.
 But that was several years ago, before screaming shells and Whin- ing bullets taught Tommy the rela- tive impoteney of leather mittens. He was to learn during a year and a half overseas and while his life bubbled from IA torturing wounds on a German battlefield, that fac ing two fists is child's play,
 More Than Lucky
 Standing in his underwear in the crowded, hot and noisy dressing room at Stillman's Gymnasium, Tommy pointed to the scars that puckered his body and grinned with 4dIdWdy 1OOh.
 I was lucky"
 It was a masterful understate ment.
 Fourteen shell fragments and a machine-gun bullet tore through that hard-muscled frame just after the 310th Infantry of the 18th Divl- sion had crossed the Roer River on Feb. 6, 1945. Tommy had escaped during the Bulge and guesses maybe he was pressing his luck. Anyhow, he volunteered, did the sergeant, to take patrol and wipe out roadblock.
 Twelve men slipped through the high grass, and 10 minutes later there were six left to be carried away. Gomez was one of them, with fragments in both arms, both legs and the back and machine-gun wound where bullet had torn through his chest, missing the heart by inches.
 Doctors Proved Wrong
 You don't have much of chance" the doctors told him. Anyhow, you'll never fight again
 And as he was moved from hos pital to hospital through Belgium, France and over to England, Tom my thought of those words and vowed he would. +
 Because that's all Gomez ever had wanted to do, be prize fighter. Back in Tampa, as a young bell hop, it had been his dream. And he had been gaining prominence, with 46 victories in 50 fights, when he went into the Army. He remem- bered. too, his one fight in the Garden, the spot they shoot for from all over the country.
 His outfit had been alerted and shipped to New York for embarka- tion. That's when Tommy, out of shape and alone, marched awe struck into the arena and lost a decision. A few days later he was on his way over, and he wanted the chance to wipe out that memory.
 Has Six Kos Already
 They called it a miracle when Tommy, a 185-pounder who wasted to 125 pounds, recovered. Tommy called it lucky
 Sure I'm lucky Tommy said, sweat. running down over the twisted machine-gun scar on his chest T was lucky to get back and I've been lucky in those six straight knockouts since my return to the ring I admit I can't box a | lick. but I can punch. So I go in and throw them till something drops So far it hasn't been me"
 The brown eyes looked far away from under the craggy black eye brows and the curley black hair The prominent jaw frightened at the side and his fingers slid un- consciously to the puckered memen- toes of nightmare on his arms. It's easy to understand why Tommy means it when he says:
 No man with gloves on is going | tO scare me n