Albert Syben (born 1 July 1951) is a Belgian former

professional boxer Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional fights are supervised by a regulatory auth ...

who competed from 1977 to 1986. He challenged for the European

heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Male boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 2 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation an ...

title twice between 1982 and 1983, and held the Belgian heavyweight title twice between 1979 and 1982.

Biography

Albert Syben was born and grew up in Cheratte,

Liège Liège ( ; ; ; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the Liège Province, province of Liège, Belgium. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east o ...

, Belgium. He fought for his first title in 1979, facing Rudy Gauwe in

Lokeren Lokeren () is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality located in the Belgian Provinces of Belgium, province of East Flanders, and belongs to the Waasland, also called ''Land van Waas'', of which it is the second ...

, his opponent's hometown, in front of 6,000 people. He defeated Gauwe to become the new Belgian

champion. Syben successfully defended the title against Robert Desnouck on 13 October 1979. On 14 December 1979, he lost his title in a rematch against Gauwe in

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

. Syben regained the Belgium heavyweight title by defeating Gauwe in their third bout on 17 April 1981. He later challenged two times for the European heavyweight title, being defeated twice by Lucien Rodriguez, in 1982 and 1983. On 1 June 1979, Syben faced

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and social activist. A global cultural icon, widely known by the nickname "The Greatest", he is often regarded as the gr ...

in a 6 round exhibition bout.

Professional boxing record

Exhibition boxing record

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Syben, Albert 1952 births Living people Belgian male boxers Sportspeople from Liège Heavyweight boxers 20th-century Belgian sportsmen