Although the score was 3:2, the pace of the fight forced Teófilo to take two necessary breaks to retie his gloves. He is arguably the greatest heavyweight boxer who never became world champion. “I didn’t need the money because it was going to mess up my life,” he told The Tribune in 2003. [2], At his prime in the 1970s, Stevenson dominance in the amateur heavyweight division coincided with Muhammad Ali's reign as the world's heavyweight champion in professional boxing. Stevenson is one of only three boxers to win three Olympic gold medals, alongside Hungarian László Papp and fellow Cuban Félix Savón. Teofilo Stevenson, who won three Olympic gold medals while boxing for Cuba and was considered one of the greatest heavyweights ever, died from a heart attack … This fight ended an eleven-year unbeaten run by Stevenson and was the only occasion that he did not win the gold medal at the World Championships when he entered the competition. They remain as powerful a testament to the nature and character of the Cuban Revolution today as they did when spoken over 30 years ago. Stevenson died on 11 June 2012 of a heart attack in Havana at the age of 60. [2]>, Stevenson was born in Puerto Padre, Cuba. In 1980, Stevenson joined Laszlo Papp of Hungary as the second boxer to win gold at three separate Olympic Games. If gifts are to be given it should be for everybody—not for a few." Local match-up (71 kg), Las Tunas, Cuba, October 1966 (debut): National Youth Championships (+81 kg), Camagüey, Cuba, 1968. And on top of it, Vysotsky scored his first victory over Stevenson at the Córdova Cardín, Cubans' home tournament, where they do their best to never let any foreigner get into the finals. His victories drew the attention of Andrei Chervonenko, a head coach in Cuba's newly implemented state sports system. [4], The young Stevenson continued to improve under Herrera in the mid 1960s, winning a junior title and gaining additional training in Havana. His opening bout against experienced Polish fighter Ludwik Denderys began dramatically when Stevenson knocked the other man down within thirty seconds of the opening bell. In the third, I beat Stevenson on points. Stevenson failed to attend the subsequent court proceedings, having travelled to Havana after his release from custody while on bail. He scored knockouts or technical knockouts in nine of his Olympic bouts, won two others by a three-round decision and won the final in 1972 when his Romanian opponent defaulted because of an injury. Stevenson was a formidable heavyweight fighter, standing 6 feet 5 inches, weighing 220 pounds and wielding a powerful right hand. Stevenson later recalled: "I had no idea the house in Delicias was going to be so big. He worked at the National Institute for Sports, Physical Education, and Recreation (INDER,) also he served as vice president of the Cuban Boxing Federation. Less than two years after his successful performance at the Munich Olympics, Stevenson, then 22-year-old, was rewarded with a house for himself in Havana and another for himself and his family in Delicias. [9] If he had accepted, it would have made Stevenson the second boxer to go straight from the Olympics into a professional debut with the world's Heavyweight crown on the line, after Pete Rademacher. Teófilo Stevenson Lawrence (29 March 1952 – 11 June 2012) was a Cuban amateur boxer, who competed from 1966 to 1986. We first met at the “Córdova Cardín” tournament in 1973 in Cuba. You make a lot of money, but how many boxers in history do we know that died poor? "It's a pity we can't solve this problem in the way we need to for everybody."[8]. [9] For consolation, he beat future Olympic champion Tyrell Biggs in February 1984 (breaking three ribs in a process) and won the super heavyweight gold at the 1984 Friendship Games, defeating Ulli Kaden of East Germany and, in the final, Valeriy Abadzhyan of the Soviet Union. Eventually Ali spent one week in Cuba with Stevenson, but their matchup would never happen. Stevenson was left holding the bag, but he’d also do what he’d never done as a younger man, when… May 30, 1987: Teofilo Stevenson UD15 James “Buster” Douglas. He suffered for 9 months of hospitalization and critical position but passed away in September 1998, from the injuries sustained from the accident. No details had been released about his death on Monday, except that he suffered a heart attack. (Papp won as a middleweight and light middleweight in the 1940s and ’50s.) It also established Stevenson as the world's premier amateur heavyweight boxer. VI Playa Girón National Championships (+81 kg), Guantánamo, Cuba, November 1968: VII Playa Girón National Championships (+81 kg), Nueva Gerona, Cuba, December 1969: Local match-up (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, 1970: I Central America and the Caribbean Championships (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, September 1970: III Giraldo Córdova Cardín Tournament (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, October 1970: VI Friendship Youth Tournament (+81 kg), Vidin, Bulgaria, October 1970: Cuba–Czechoslovakia Duals (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, March 1971: Czechoslovakia–Cuba Duals (+81 kg), Prague, Czechoslovakia, March 1971: Yugoslavia–Cuba Duals (+81 kg), Titograd, Yugoslavia, April 1971: Austria–Cuba Duals (+81 kg), Vienna, Austria, May 1971: IV Giraldo Córdova Cardín Tournament (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, June 1971: Panama–Cuba Duals (+81 kg), Panama City, Panama, June 1971: Cuba–Bulgaria Duals (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, July 1971: Pan American Games (+81 kg), Cali, Colombia, August 1971: Local match-up (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, September 1971: III TSC Tournament (+81 kg), Berlin, East Germany, October 1971: Cuba–USSR Duals (+81 kg), Berlin, East Germany, October 1971: IX Playa Girón National Championships (+81 kg), Nueva Gerona, Cuba, October–November 1971 (no medal awarded): II Central America and the Caribbean Championships (+81 kg), San Juan, Puerto Rico, November 1971: VII Friendship Youth Tournament (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, December 1971: Cuba–USSR Duals (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, January 1972: X Playa Girón National Championships (+81 kg), Santiago de Cuba, Cuba, February–March 1972: Cuba–Romania Duals (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, April 1972: Czechoslovakia–Cuba Duals (+81 kg), Ústí nad Labem, Czechoslovakia, April 1972: GDR–Cuba Duals (+81 kg), Berlin, East Germany, 1972: III Chemistry Cup (+81 kg), Halle, East Germany, May 1972: Local match-up (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, May 1972: V Giraldo Córdova Cardín Tournament (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, July 1972: XX Summer Olympics (+81 kg), Munich, West Germany, September 1972: III Central America and the Caribbean Championships (+81 kg), San José, Costa Rica, November 1972: XI Playa Girón National Championships (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, February 1973: Golden Belt Tournament (+81 kg), Bucharest, Romania, April 1973: VI Giraldo Córdova Cardín Tournament (+81 kg), Santiago de Cuba, Cuba, July 1973: IV Central America and the Caribbean Championships (+81 kg), Mexico City, Mexico, November 1973: XII Playa Girón National Championships (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, January 1974: 1974 Central American and Caribbean Games (+81 kg), Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, March 1974: Golden Belt Tournament (+81 kg), Bucharest, Romania, May 1974: VII Giraldo Córdova Cardín Tournament (+81 kg), Camagüey, Cuba, July 1974: World Championships (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, August 1974: V Central America and the Caribbean Championships (+81 kg), Caracas, Venezuela, December 1974: XIII Playa Girón National Championships (+81 kg), Santiago de Cuba, Cuba, January 1975: INDER Anniversary Festival (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, February 1975: XV Honvéd Cup (+81 kg), Budapest, Hungary, March 1975: Golden Belt Tournament (+81 kg), Bucharest, Romania, April 1975: VIII Giraldo Córdova Cardín Tournament (+81 kg), Las Villas, Cuba, July 1975: Pan American Games (+81 kg), Mexico City, Mexico, October 1975: Local match-up (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, December 1975: XIV Playa Girón National Championships (+81 kg), Camagüey, Cuba, January 1976: Jamaica–Cuba Duals (+81 kg), Kingston, Jamaica, February 1976: Usov Memorial Tournament (+81 kg), Minsk, Belarus SSR, April 1976: IX Giraldo Córdova Cardín Tournament (+81 kg), Pinar del Río, Cuba, May 1976: XXI Summer Olympics (+81 kg), Maurice Richard Arena, Montreal, Canada, July 1976: Local match-up (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, February 1977: Local match-up (+81 kg), Camagüey, Cuba, April 1977: Local match-up (+81 kg), Matanzas, Cuba, April 1977: Local match-up (+81 kg), Bayamo, Cuba, April 1977: I Battle of Carabobo International Tournament (+81 kg), Caracas, Venezuela, June 1977: X Giraldo Córdova Cardín Tournament (+81 kg), Matanzas, Cuba, July 1977: VIII Central America and the Caribbean Championships (+81 kg), Panama City, Panama, August 1977: XVI Playa Girón National Championships (+81 kg), Camagüey, Cuba, January 1978: Cuba–USA Duals (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, February 1978: XXIX Strandzha Cup (+81 kg), Sofia, Bulgaria, March 1978: Golden Belt Tournament (+81 kg), Bucharest, Romania, March 1978: XI Giraldo Córdova Cardín Tournament (+81 kg), Cienfuegos, Cuba, April 1978: World Championships (+81 kg), Belgrade, Yugoslavia, May 1978: National Team Championships (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, September 1978: USA–Cuba Duals (+81 kg), Madison Square Garden, New York City, October 1978: XVII Playa Girón National Championships (+81 kg), Guantánamo, Cuba, January 1979: Cuba–USA Duals (+81 kg), Coliseo de la Ciudad Deportiva, Havana, Cuba, February 1979: VIII Chemistry Cup (+81 kg), Halle, East Germany, March 1979: Golden Belt Tournament (+81 kg), Bucharest, Romania, March 1979: XII Giraldo Córdova Cardín Tournament (+81 kg), Havana, Cuba, May 1979: VIII Pan American Games (+81 kg), Roberto Clemente Coliseum, San Juan, Puerto Rico, July 1979: National Team Championships (+81 kg), Puerto Padre, Cuba, September 1979: XVIII Playa Girón National Championships (+81 kg), Pinar del Río, Cuba, January 1980: USA–Cuba Duals (+81 kg), Charlotte Coliseum, Charlotte, North Carolina, February 1980: XI Ústí nad Labem Grand Prix (+81 kg) Ústí nad Labem, Czechoslovakia, April 1980: XX Honvéd Cup (+81 kg), Budapest, Hungary, April 1980: XIII Giraldo Córdova Cardín Tournament (+81 kg), Holguín, Cuba, May–June 1980: XXII Summer Olympics (+81 kg), Moscow, Soviet Union, July–August 1980: XIX Playa Girón National Championships (+91 kg), Matanzas, Cuba, January–February 1981: Local match-up (+91 kg), San José, Cuba, June 1981: XX Playa Girón National Championships (+91 kg), Cienfuegos, Cuba, January 1982: XI Chemistry Cup (+91 kg), Halle, East Germany, March 1982: XV Giraldo Córdova Cardín Tournament (+91 kg), Guantánamo, Cuba, May 1982: World Championships (+91 kg), Munich, West Germany, May 1982: XIV Central American and Caribbean Games (+91 kg), Havana, Cuba, August 1982: USA–Cuba Duals (+91 kg), Sparks Convention Center, Reno, Nevada, November 1982: XXI Playa Girón National Championships (+91 kg), Las Tunas, Cuba, January 1983: XVI Giraldo Córdova Cardín Tournament (+91 kg), Santiago de Cuba, Cuba, August 1983: North American Championships (+91 kg), Houston, Texas, September 1983: XXII Playa Girón National Championships (+91 kg), Manzanillo, Cuba, January 1984: USA–Cuba Duals (+91 kg), Sparks Convention Center, Reno, Nevada, February 1984: XIII Chemistry Cup (+91 kg), Halle, East Germany, March–April 1984: AIBA International Challenge (+91 kg), Los Angeles, California, April 1984: Intercup (+91 kg), Karlsruhe, West Germany, May 1984: Cuba–USSR Duals (+91 kg), Havana, Cuba, August 1984: Friendship Games (+91 kg), Havana, Cuba, August 1984: III TSC Tournament (+81 kg), Berlin, East Germany, September 1984: XXIII Playa Girón National Championships (+91 kg), Nueva Gerona, Cuba, January 1985: VI Military Spartakiad of the Friendly Armies of the Socialist Countries (+91 kg), Bydgoszcz, Poland, August 1985: IV TSC Tournament (+91 kg), Berlin, East Germany, September 1985: XXI Vaclav Prochazka Memorial (+91 kg), Ostrava, Czechoslovakia, October 1985: XXIV Playa Girón National Championships (+91 kg), Havana, Cuba, January 1986: XXXVII Strandzha Cup (+91 kg), Sofia, Bulgaria, February 1986: XV Chemistry Cup (+91 kg), Halle, East Germany, March 1986: XVII Ústí nad Labem Grand Prix (+91 kg) Ústí nad Labem, Czechoslovakia, March 1986: XIX Giraldo Córdova Cardín Tournament (+91 kg), Guantánamo, Cuba, April 1986: World Championships (+91 kg), Sparks Convention Center, Reno, Nevada, May 1986: He finished his twenty-years-long career having 332 fights under his belt, with a record of 302 wins, 22 losses (only 1 by knockout,) and 8 draws. Felix Savon of Cuba, who idolized Stevenson while a young boxer, won three Olympic heavyweight titles from 1992 to 2000. Teofilo Stevenson passed away. "Stevenson is a champion in all kinds of ways. The Cuban boxing team won three gold medals, their first in Olympic boxing history, as well as one silver and one bronze. The obituary was featured in Legacy on June 12, 2012. "The Cuban sporting family was "[10] Stevenson went to the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow and became the second boxer ever, after Papp, to win three Olympic boxing gold medals. But the U.S. Treasury Department did not allow the series, saying that it violated terms of the U.S. embargo against Cuba. (AP Photo, file) "Stevenson would have been phenomenal as a pro, he could have been in the same class as Muhammad Ali or Joe Frazier. A bunker?’" AIBA President Anwar Chowdhry, when asked did the Cuban authorities acted properly in giving Stevenson two houses and two cars, said: "These things should not be allowed. But money is a small part of the dilemma facing Cuban athletes. The Games were marred by a terrorist attack in which Palestinian militants held members of the Israeli team hostage. Martha Rocha Death| Obituary – Martha Rocha sadly passed away at age 83 , Maria Martha Hacker Rocha was a Brazilian model, the first winner of Miss Brasil in … [12] Although he hailed from the tiny town of Bowlus, Minnesota, he had honed his boxing skills in the U.S. Navy. In each stanza, Stevenson took a count, while in the final three minutes, I knocked him out. Jackie Robinson / Cause of death Jackie Robinson, who made history in 1947 by becoming the first black baseball player in the major leagues, suffered a heart attack in his home in Stamford, Conn., yesterday morning and died at Stamford Hospital at 7:10 A.M. [2] King's top rival Arum almost succeeded and came the closest to pulling off an Ali-Stevenson matchup when the Cubans accepted his $1 million offer for five three-round exhibition fights. The cause was a heart attack, the government-run Radio Havana Cuba said. Stevenson was often dubbed by the American media as Ali's "Communist twin", and speculations went back and forth as to their much anticipated fight if Stevenson would accept an offer to turn pro (which in essence meant to defect and to leave Cuba permanently). Died: June 11, 2012 ( heart failure) Birthplace: Puerto Padre, Cuba. His mother Dolores Lawrence was a native Cuban, but her parents were immigrants from the Anglophone island of Saint Kitts. (AP Photo, file) FILE - In this Aug. 2, 1980, file photo, after winning his third Olympic heavyweight championship gold medal, Cuba's Teofilo Stevenson waves to the crowd at the Moscow Olympic Games. Some news media reports said he was a native of Jamaica, but he said in a 2003 interview with The Chicago Tribune in Havana that he was born in the Cuban town of Puerto Padre. 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