By Eric Bottjer
ANTHONY NELLEMS, 52, Indiana welterweight, died in February. Nellems received certainly one of six fights in 1993, preventing in 5 states as an “opponent.”
LEFOUMBOU NGOMA, 46, welterweight from Congo, died in July, after collapsing at a health club whereas coaching an newbie boxer. Ngoma was 9-2-1 (7 KOs) from 2005-2012. Ngoma received his final three professional bouts – by then, he was residing in Hong Kong and referred to as “Bresson Brel.” A Hong Kong obituary claimed Ngoma was an 8-time African newbie champion and that he had certified for the 2004 Olympics (analysis couldn’t affirm both declare).
JAY NEWMAN, 68, longtime agent for Larry Holmes, handed in December after a protracted battle with most cancers. Newman was a hedge fund supervisor and ran “Larry Holmes Enterprises” for years, and produced Muhammad and Me: The Larry Holmes Story, a documentary on Holmes’ life.
PAUL NICOLOSI, 91, Louisiana light-weight, died in November. Nicolosi misplaced his sole professional struggle, a 4-round break up resolution in 1954 in New Orleans. Nicolosi, from Hammond, labored as a carpenter, boilermaker and deputy sheriff.
BRIAN NOLAN, 63, Canadian light-weight, died in August. Nolan was 2-2 as a professional (1 KO), preventing in Canada in 1985-1986. Nolan labored as a blackjack vendor at a Michigan on line casino.
OBISIA NWANKPA, 75, Nigerian tremendous light-weight, handed In June. He was confirmed to a wheelchair and affected by dementia on the time of his loss of life. Nwankpa misplaced within the opening spherical of the 1972 Munich Olympics and compiled a 23-6 mark (16 KOs) from 1977-1991, shedding his solely world title problem to WBC super-lightweight champion Saoul Mamby in 1981 in Lagos. Southpaw Nwankpa took a lead after six rounds, however Mamby floored him twice within the seventh and received at the very least six of the final eight rounds to drag out an in depth win. Nwankpa, nicknamed “Golden Gloves,” grew to become a nationwide newbie coach in retirement (teaching his nation’s 2004 and 2008 Olympic squads) and his loss of life was famous in his nation’s nationwide media.
GEORGIA O’CONNOR, 25, British newbie youth champion, died in Might from most cancers. O’Connor, who had three professional bouts (all resolution wins) introduced in January she had terminal most cancers. O’Connor mentioned he had been struggling immeasurable ache since October and requested repeatedly for blood exams, to no avail. Ten days earlier than her loss of life, she married her associate, who had stop his job to assist her.
PAT O’CONNOR, 74, Minnesota light-heavyweight, died in a nursing residence from results of Parkinson’s and dementia. O’Connor received the nationwide Golden Gloves in 1967 at age 16 as a welterweight and turned professional in 1968, going 40-6 (19 KOs). Shut losses to Denny Moyer and a KO defeat to Andy Kendall killed any hopes of him breaking into the world scores. Pat’s brother Dan advised reporters his brother was recognized for his modesty and turned professional to fulfill the needs of others. Pat himself was merely blissful to win a nationwide newbie title.
GABRIEL OLANREWAJU, 40, Nigerian light-heavyweight, died in March in Accra, Ghana after struggling a coronary heart assault throughout a match. Olanrewaju collapsed within the third spherical of his struggle with Jon Mbanugu and died later that night time at an area hospital. Olanrewaju’s document was 13-9-1 (21 KOs).
ALEJANDRA MARINA OLIVARES, 47, a number of world title holder from Argentina, died in July from a stroke. Olivares was 33-3-2 (16 KOs) from 2005-2017, successful WBC, WBA and WBO belts in 4 weight lessons. Olivares was well-known in Argentina for advocating for ladies’s equality and sports activities and was lately elected in her hometown of Santa Fe to assist write a brand new structure for that space.
BRIAN O’MELIA, 79, New Jersey referee and former heavyweight professional, died in December. O’Melia was 16-32-2 (6 KOs) from 1970-1980, shedding selections to Scott LeDoux, Johnny Boudreaux, Lorenzo Zanon and Dino Denis. O’Melia was a referee from 1985-2013. He labored in Jersey Metropolis as a particular schooling teacher.
GUSTAVO OROPEZA, 68, Texas middleweight, handed in August. Oropeza had six professional fights scattered from 1977-1983, going 3-2-1 (3 KOs). This was after a profession of some 200 newbie fights. Oropeza labored as a pipe fitter and cab driver after boxing.
MARSHALL PARMALEE, 81, New Jersey heavyweight, died in Might in his native North Carolina. Parmalee had 5 fights at Embassy Corridor in N. Bergen from 1970-1972, quitting after shedding his first match. He labored as a truck driver, routinely making roundtrips from the East Coast to the Midwest.
MIKE PARRAZ, 67, Ohio featherweight, died in August at a Northwest Ohio hospice facility. Parraz, from Toledo, was 3-5 (3 KOs) from 1982-1986, retiring after a one-round loss to future belt-holder Tracy Patterson. Parraz grew up poor and labored as a discipline laborer and garbageman.
RENATO PASCALE, 60, Swiss light-heavyweight, died in March after a protracted sickness. Pascale had been doing poorly the final 10 years of his life, in accordance with an older brother. Pascale received the Swiss nationwide newbie title in 1993 at light-heavyweight and turned professional in December that yr. He went 8-6 (3 KOs) in a three-year profession, by no means advancing into 10-rounders.
PAUL PATIN, 86, Texas middleweight, died in September. Patin, from Beaumont, was 40-11-1 (13 KOs) from 1960-1972, shedding his one shot on the state light-heavyweight title simply earlier than retiring. Patin boxed whereas within the Military, serving in the course of the Korean Battle. He ran a fried-chicken eatery in Vinton after he stop boxing and served Vinton as a college board member and metropolis official/
JIM PATZKE, 78, Oregon heavyweight, died in August after a protracted sickness. Patze, a Vietnam vet, had 5 professional fights whereas residing in Anchorage in 1973-1974, however retired from boxing after returning to Southern Oregon and turning into a logger.
GORDIE PAULL, 84, Canadian middleweight, died in October. Paull was 2-2 within the early Nineteen Sixties,
JONATHAN PENALOSA, 57, Filipino super-flyweight, died in April of colon most cancers at a Southern California hospital. The brother of Gerry and Dodie Boy Penalosa, Jonathan went 15-4-1 (7 KOs) from 1985-1993. Penalosa was unbeaten in 16 fights when he challenged WBA champion Yong Kang Kim in South Korea. Kim received in 6 rounds. Penalosa misplaced his subsequent three fights and retired. Penalosa spent years within the Manny Pacquiao camp as an assistant coach.
CESAR OSCAR PEREZ, 66, Argentinian welterweight, died in December. Perez was 11-10-5 (4 KOs) from 1981-1991, his one notable struggle a first-round KO defeat to a younger, unbeaten Jorge Castro in 1988.
WILLIE PERRY, 66, Illinois middleweight, died in Might at an area hospital. Perry was a stable journeyman from 1983-1994, going 5-16 (2 KOs), with simply six stoppage losses. He went 10 rounds with contender Harold Brazier and lasted six rounds with murderous puncher Antwun Echols. In retirement, Perry was a preacher.
EARL PILGRIM, 85, Canadian cruiserweight, died in July. Pilgrim was 1-5, his sole win a good sixth-round KO over Cecil Grey (9-9) in Pilgrim’s second professional match. Three of Pilgrim’s six bouts on his official document had been scheduled for 10 rounds, so it’s attainable he had extra professional fights which were misplaced to time. He turned professional in June 1966 and misplaced his final struggle in April 1968. After boxing, Pilgrim labored in Newfoundland as a forest ranger and located fame late in life, authoring 15 books throughout his final 30 years. His loss of life was famous by CBC Information and varied Canadian media retailers.
JOHNNY POWELL, 89, Louisiana welterweight, died in November. Powell was 4-15 (1 KO) from 1955-1966. All of his bouts came about on the undercards of Louisiana membership occasions. Powell skilled newbie boxers at a New Orleans health club for a few years.
DWIGHT MUHAMMAD QAWI, 72, former world light-heavyweight champion from Camden, New Jersey, handed in July after a five-year battle with dementia. Born Dwight Braxton in Baltimore, Dwight grew up in Camden, a tough space the place it was straightforward to search out hassle. Dwight discovered it and spent 5 years in Rahway jail for armed theft. He realized to field in jail and, upon his launch at age 25, turned professional. He was 1-1-1 initially and again in court docket quickly sufficient, for assault and battery. A sympathetic decide gave Qawi one other probability and Dwight devoted himself to boxing from then on. He took Matthew Saad Muhammad’s title from him in 1981, beat him in a rematch and had two extra profitable defenses earlier than shedding a title unification to Michael Spinks. Regardless of his peak (5-foot-7), Qawi opted to maneuver to cruiserweight, successful a title in 1985 and shedding it one yr later in an epic battle with Evander Holyfield. A KO loss in a rematch with Holyfield ended Qawi’s time on the high (he practically regained a cruiser title in 1989, dropping an in depth resolution to Robert Daniels). Qawi fought till age 46, retiring in 1998 with a 41-11-1 mark (25 KOs), together with a Seventh-round loss to a come-backing George Foreman in 1988. Qawi spent his later years working at a house for recovering addicts in Mays Touchdown.
