Lionel Rose

Infobox_Boxer


name = Lionel Rose
nationality = Flagicon|AUS Australian
realname = Lionel Rose
weight = Bantamweight
birth_date = Birth date and age|1948|6|21|mf=y
birth_place = Jackson's Track Victoria, Australia
home = Australia
style= Orthodox
total = 64
wins = 53
KO = 12
losses = 11
draws = 0
no contests = 0
died = 1990
family = baby (Lionel Rose Jr.)

Lionel Edward Rose, MBE (born June 21, 1948) is an Australian bantamweight boxer, now retired, who became the first Aboriginal in boxing history to win a world title.

Early life

Born and raised at Jackson's Track near the Victorian town of Warragul [http://www.boxrec.com/media/index.php/Lionel_Rose] , Rose grew up in hardship, learning to box from his father, Roy, a useful fighter on the tent-show circuit. According to the boxing historian Grantlee Kieza, Rose "sparred with rags on his hands in a ring made from fencing wire stretched between trees".

At the age of 10, Rose struck up a friendship with a press photographer, Graham Walsh, who encouraged him and bought him his first pair of gloves. Aged about 15, he came under the tutelage of Frank Oates, a Warragul trainer (whose daughter Jenny he later married). He won the Australian amateur flyweight title at age 15.

Boxing career

Rose began his professional boxing career on September 9, 1964, outpointing Mario Magriss over eight rounds. This fight was in Warragul, but the majority of Rose's fights were to be held in Melbourne. Along the way he was helped by Jack and Shirley Rennie, in whose Melbourne home he stayed, training every day in their backyard gym.

After five wins in a row, on July 23, 1965, he was rematched with Singtong Por Tor, whom Rose had beaten in a 12-round decision. Por Tor inflicted Rose's first defeat, beating him on points in six rounds. On October 14 of the same year, he had his first fight abroad, beating Laurie Ny by a decision in 10 rounds at Christchurch, New Zealand.

Over his next nine fights, he had a record of eight wins and one loss, with one knockout. The lone loss in those nine fights was to Ray Perez, against whom Rose split a pair of bouts. Then, on October 28, 1966, Rose met Noel Kunde at Melbourne, for the Australian bantamweight title. Rose won the title by defeating Kunde in a fifteen round decision.

He won one more bout in 1966, and eight in 1967 (including a thirteenth round knockout win against Rocky Gattelari to defend his Australian championship) before challenging Fighting Harada for the world's bantamweight title on February 26 of 1968, in Tokyo. Rose made history by becoming the first Aborigine to be a world champion boxer when he defeated Harada in a 15-round decision. This win made Rose an instant national hero in Australia, and an icon among Aborigines. A public reception at Melbourne Town Hall was witnessed by a crowd of more than 100,000. On July 2 of that year, he returned to Tokyo to retain his title with a 15 round decision win over Takao Sakurai. Then, on December 6, he met Chucho Castillo at the Inglewood Forum in Inglewood, California. Rose beat Castillo by decision, but the points verdict in favour of him infuriated many in the pro-Castillo crowd, and a riot began: 14 fans and fight referee Dick Young were hospitalised for injuries received.

Rose was Australian of the Year in 1968, the first Aborigine to be awarded the honour.

On March 8, 1969, Rose retained the title with a 15-round decision over Alan Rudkin, but five months later he returned to Inglewood, where he faced Ruben Olivares on August 22. Rose lost the world bantamweight title to Olivares via a fifth-round knockout.

Rose continued boxing after his defeat against Olivares, but, after defeats against practically unknown fighters, many believed he was done as a prime fighter. However, he was far from finished: he upset future world lightweight champion Itshimatsu Suzuki on October 10, 1970 in a 10-round decision, and once again, he positioned himself as a world title challenger, albeit in the lightweight division, 17 pounds over the division where he crowned himself world champion.

Despite having lost to Jeff White for the Australian lightweight title, Rose got another world title try when he faced WBC world junior lightweight champion Yoshiaki Numata, on May 30, 1971, at Hiroshima. Numata beat Rose by a fifteen round decision, and Rose announced his retirement soon after.

In 1975, he came back, but after losing four of his next six bouts, including one against Rafael Limon, Rose decided to retire for good. Rose compiled a record of 42 wins and 11 losses as a professional boxer, with 12 wins by knockout.

Retirement

In Lionel's retirement, he had legal problems (including a conviction for burglary)Fact|date=September 2007 but was also a successful businessman. Lionel Rose was able to manage his money and make good financial decisions, and he has enjoyed the monetary benefits his career brought him. Lionel was showcased in 2002 in the Ring Magazine section "Where are they now?".

During his off time from boxing in the 1970s, Rose embarked on a successful singing career in Australia having hits with "I Thank You" and "Please Remember Me" in 1970.

In 1996, Rose presented young burns-attack victim Tjandamurra O'Shane with his world-title belt, hoping to speed the youngster's recovery. O'Shane, also an Aborigine, had been the victim of an horrific attack in Cairns the previous year. [cite web|url=http://www.eastsideboxing.com/nobbs0701.html|title=WBC Presents Belt to Lionel Rose|last=Nobbs|first=Tony|work=eastsideboxing.comeastsideboxing.com|accessdate=2008-06-15]

In 2007 Rose suffered a stroke that left him with speech and movement difficulties. [cite news|url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/sport/fight-to-the-end/2008/06/14/1213321683301.html|title=Fight to the end|last=Elder|first=John|date=2008-06-15|work=The Sydney Morning Herald|accessdate=2008-06-15] [cite web|url=http://www.eastsideboxing.com/news.php?p=11984&more=1|title=Lionel Rose MBE Recovering From Stroke|last=Nobbs|first=Tony|date=2007-08-07|work=eastsideboxing.com|accessdate=2008-06-15]

References

* [http://www.australianoftheyear.gov.au/recipient.asp?pID=9 1968 Australian of the Year]
* [http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0114298/ IMDd: Rose against the odds] - movie
* [http://www.deadlys.vibe.com.au/deadlys_new/2005/view.asp?nomid=50 The Deadlies] - nominee for the Ella Award for Lifetime Achievement in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Sport
* [http://www.auspost.com.au/philatelic/stamps/stampshop_2.asp?category_id=429&product_type=8 Australia Post] - 50c stamp issue (March 2005) featuring Lionel Roses' boxing gloves
* " [http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn1060605 Bill Long proudly presents Lionel Rose in his first featherweight bout against Vicente Garcia featherweight champion of Mexico] " (1969)
* " [http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn1055076 Lionel Rose Australian : the life story of a champion] " / Lionel Rose as told to Rod Humphries (1969, ISBN 0207951462)
* " [http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn688277 Rose against the odds: the Lionel Rose story] " / Andrew Rule, adapted from John Dixon's original screenplay (1991, ISBN 0646033905)
* Stoddart, Brian & Vamplew, Wray (1994); "Sport in Australia: A Social History"; Cambridge University Press, Melbourne, Australia, ISBN 0-521-43513-7
* Kieza, Grantlee, "Australian Boxing: An Illustrated History" (1990); Gary Allen Pty. Ltd., Paddington, Australia, ISBN 1-875169-10-5.
* Fight record: http://www.boxrec.com/boxer_display.php?boxer_id=011513