Pearce Lane boxed for the Chicago Golden Gloves team in 1954 in the USA vs Europe matches, winning his match by a first-round KO over Belgian Emile Vlaemink. Lane attended Michigan State University, making the quarter-finals of the 1951 NCAA Championship while there. He won the 1954 International Golden Gloves, and was All-Army champion and Interservice runner-up in 1955 and 1956. After the 1956 Olympics, Lane never boxed again but became a pilot in the Army and a career military man. His brother, Kenny Lane, was a highly ranked professional boxer who fought for the world lightweight and light-welterweight titles.