Brian Packer (2 March 1944 – 30 August 2021) was a British boxer.[1] He competed in the men's bantamweight event at the 1964 Summer Olympics.[2] At the 1964 Summer Olympics, he lost in his first fight to Takao Sakurai of Japan in the Round of 32.[2][3]
Biography
Packer was born in March 1944 in Dartford, and began to box at the age of eleven.[3] While working at a dockyard as an apprentice, he was he should never box again, unless he wanted to suffer permanent damage to his hand.[1] However, after multiple operations, he went on to win the Amateur Boxing Association (ABA) bantamweight title.[1]
He won the 1963 and 1964 ABA British bantamweight titles, when boxing out of the Dartford ABC.[4] At the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Packer competed in the men's bantamweight event.[5] However, he lost his first-round bout to Takao Sakurai,[5] who would go on to win the gold medal.[6]
Following the Olympics, Paker became a professional boxer,[3] winning fourteen of his fifteen fights.[7][8] Packer then went up to the featherweight division, with his final fight taking place in November 1968.[1] The following month, while working as a welder, he damaged his leg during a fall, which ended his boxing career.[9]
Packer died on 30 August 2021 at the age of 77,[10] after a long battle with dementia.[11]
References
- ^ a b c d "Brian Packer". Olympedia. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
- ^ a b Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Brian Packer Olympic Results". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
- ^ a b c "Brian Packer, 1944-2021 – Boxing News". Sports Centre. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
- ^ "Roll of Honour". England Boxing. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
- ^ a b "Bantamweight (≤54 kilograms), Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
- ^ "BRIAN PACKER, 1944-2021". Pocket Mags. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
- ^ "Brian Packer". Fights Rec. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
- ^ "Brian Packer (Dartford)". Boxing History. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
- ^ "Tokyo Olympic bantam-weight boxer Brian Packer from Rochester in battle with dementia". Kent Online. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
- ^ "Brian Packer, 1944-2021". Boxing News Online. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
- ^ Team GB boxer and Rochester pensioner Brian Packer, who fought at 1964 Tokyo Olympics, passes away following dementia battle
External links
- Brian Packer at BoxRec (registration required)
- Brian Packer at Olympedia
- Brian Packer at Team GB
This page was last edited on 23 May 2023, at 07:27