1980 - 1989 Canadian Boxing

A GOLDEN DECADE OF CANADIAN AMATEUR BOXING - 1980 - 1989: By Brian W. Zelley

The Eighties gave us many interesting stories in Canadian Amateur Boxing, on a provincial level,
a dawning of a new age would begin for British Columbia and regions like Vancouver Island
with the revival of the BC Diamond Belt tournament at Victoria in 1980.

In Olympic Games history, it started off on the wrong side with the boycott of the Moscow Olympic Games.
But, in 1984 at Los Angeles, Canadian boxers WILLIE DEWIT, SHAWN O'SULLIVAN and DALE WALTERS would win medals
and set the stage for various medals in subsequent Commonwealth Games and the 1988 Olympic Games and the
additional medal victories. Some of the Canadian boxers in 1988 Olympic Games were alumni of the 1984
Junior Nationals that took place in Burnaby, BC such as SCOTTY OLSON and MANNY SOBRAL.

Looking back there were many talented Canadian boxers with various terms as a Canadian Champion and high level performance on the International stage - a sample of names to remember:

Lennox Lewis, Ray Downey, Scott Olson, Asif Dar, Steve Beaupre, Steve and Jaime Pagendam, Dan Sherry,
Eggerton Marcus, Howard and Otis Grant, Gregory Gayle and many more.

BOXING BC - 1980 to 1989

Attempting to highlight the Boxing BC story in the Eighties is an interesting case study from 1980 Diamond Boy
GARY ROBINSON, to Canadian senior champions Champions such as DALE WALTERS, WAYNE WELSH, JOE PENDRY,
MANNY SOBRAL and GERONIMO BIE. Then there were the many boxers that performed on a regular basis from
Vancouver Island to the Alberta border:
Who could forget AL HARPER, ALAN BROWN, ALEX BANKIER, CLIFF BALLENDINE, CLINT DUMAIS, DEEP BUTTER,
GARY WOOD, GORDON JONES, KIT MUNRO, MIKE WOOD, SCOTT and TIM CESSFORD, TONY DUFFY, and WILLY CURRY.

Then there were the many officials and coaches such as officials - AL YOUNG, BERT LOWES, FRED FULLER, RICK BROUGH,
RON WHALLEY, VIC MURDOCH, and many others.

VANCOUVER ISLAND AMATEUR BOXING

Photos: Eddie Haddad - George Nepper & boxers Alan Brown
Newcastle Boxing Club 1964 - Brown,Vic Murdoch & Zelley

VANCOUVER ISLAND BOXING

Throughout the decades, there have been many clubs from Victoria to Gold River, Port Alberni to Chemainus,
and hundreds of individuals from boxers Eddie Haddad to Donny Orr, Skimp Williams to Stefan Melideo.
Champions and contenders from 1964 Olympian Fred Desrosiers to 1973 Canadian senior champion Jack Snaith.
Vancouver Island Champions- Tommy Black to Brian Zelley, and Senior Golden Boys like Sammy May & Alan Curtis
to three time junior Golden Boy Cliff Ballendine.

There has been tournaments such as the 2000 Canadian Senior Nationals to the 1978 Nanaimo Bathtub Capital
Golden Gloves tournaments, and the 1976 English Schoolboy boxers vs BC Select Juniors like Dale Walters.

There have been many coaches and officials with the likes of Harry Morris, Taylor Gordon, Jim Hills,
Harry Pollitt & Skimp Williams.

Serving as ring officials like Jack O'Hanley, Howard Curling, Rick Brough, Bert Wilkinson,
Joe Preston & many more scattered from Campbell River to Victoria.

There have been boxing clubs with a short duration like the Ladysmith Boxing Club, to old ones such as the
Nanaimo Boxing Club from 1971 to 2009 and beyond. Or clubs that hosted two Vancouver Island Championship
Tournaments: London Boxing Club (1964) and Parksville Boxing Club (1984). And new boxing clubs
such as the Capital City Boxing Club

To document some of the history, there are The Sportscaster, Daily newspapers, Nanaimo Times,
Leisure Magazine, The Vancouver Island Amateur Boxing News (Spring & Fall - 1983) and then there
was the "B C Amateur Boxing News".

Then there was a few years to remember with the preparation of the 1994 Commonwealth Games
with some early members of the Boxing Committee in 1989 - Hassan Sunderani, Brian Zelley,
Mike Sartori, and Glynn Jones (Boxing BC rep).

1963 BRITISH COLUMBIA GOLDEN GLOVES:
*Four Island boxers would win in the finals of the 1963
Golden Gloves: Cal Osmond, Earl Pilgrim, Larry Cardinal and Mike Caird.