Benjamin Foord (21 January 1913 – 29 September 1942) was a South African professional mixed class boxer of the 1930s and 1940s, who won the South African heavyweight title,

British Boxing Board of Control The British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC) is the governing body of professional boxing in the United Kingdom. History The British Boxing Board of Control was formed in 1929 from the old National Sporting Club and is headquartered in Cardiff. ...

(BBBoFC) British heavyweight title, and British Empire heavyweight title, his professional fighting weight varied from , i.e.

Light heavyweight Light heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the division is above and up to , falling between super middleweight and cruiserweight (boxing), cruiserweight. The light heavyweight class has ...

to , i.e.

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 ...

. Foord died on 29 September 1942, aged 29 years, when he accidentally shot himself.

Boxing career

Professional

Ben Foord's first professional boxing bout was a KO victory over Billy Miller at the Town Hall,

Durban Durban ( ; , from meaning "bay, lagoon") is the third-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the largest city in the Provinces of South Africa, province of KwaZulu-Natal. Situated on the east coast of South ...

on 4 June 1932. This was followed by fights including; six wins, one defeat, two draws, then a

points A point is a small dot or the sharp tip of something. Point or points may refer to: Mathematics * Point (geometry), an entity that has a location in space or on a plane, but has no extent; more generally, an element of some abstract topologica ...

victory over, a points defeat by, and a points victory over Clyde Chastain from the USA at City Hall, in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

on 4 February 1933, 4 March 1933, and 8 April 1933. Foord then travelled to the United Kingdom, wining a points victory over Vicente Parrile from

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

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London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

on 29 May 1933. Flowed by two wins, then a points win over Hans Schoenrath of

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

at the Royal Albert Hall on 30 October 1933. Another two more wins, one defeat, Foord then travelled home to South Africa, with a knockout win over Willie Storm for the vacant South African heavyweight boxing heavyweight title at City Hall,

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on 25 June 1934. Next a win, then a draw with Presidio Pavesi from

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

Wanderers Stadium The Wanderers Stadium, also known as the Bullring due to its intimidating atmosphere, is a cricket stadium situated just south of Sandton in Illovo, Johannesburg in Gauteng, South Africa. Test, One Day and First class cricket matches are ...

, Johannesburg on 8 September 1934, Foord then travelled back to the UK, with a win, then a draw with Eddie Wenstob of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

at Empire Pool, London on 4 February 1935. After a TKO victory over Harry Staal from the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

at Granby Halls,

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

on 25 March 1935. Foord won a TKO victory over Harry Staal at Granby Halls, Leicester on 18 May 1935. He then lost a points defeat to

Gunnar Bärlund Gunnar Richard Bernhard Bärlund (9 January 1911 – 2 August 1982) was a Finnish heavyweight boxer who won the European amateur title in 1934. He competed in the 1932 Summer Olympics, but lost in the first round to the eventual winner Santiago ...

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium, currently branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE Limited, EE for sponsorship reasons, is an association football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Sta ...

, London on 25 June 1935. Flowed by three more wins, then a retirement victory over Claudio Villar of (Spain) at Royal Albert Hall, London on 23 September 1935. He then lost a TKO to Maurice Strickland from

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

at Empire Pool, Wembley on 8 October 1935. Next a points victory over Larry Gains of Canada at Granby Halls, Leicester on 25 November 1935. Followed by a points defeat by Roy Lazer from the USA at Royal Albert Hall, in London on 16 December 1935.Western Daily Press (Tuesday 17 December 1935). ''Western Daily Press - Ben Foord versus Roy Lazer.

Western Daily Press The ''Western Daily Press'' is a regional newspaper covering parts of South West England, mainly Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Somerset as well as the metropolitan areas of Bath and North East Somerset and the Bristol area. It is published Mon ...

. ISBN n/a Next another points victory over Roy Lazer at Granby Halls, Leicester on 20 January 1936. He the had a points victory over Tommy Loughran from USA at Granby Halls, Leicester on 10 February 1936. Next a points victory over Larry Gains from Canada at Granby Halls, Leicester on 9 March 1936. His next fight was a knockout victory over George Cook from

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at White City Stadium, Cardiff on 6 June 1936. A TKO victory over Jack Petersen for the BBBoFC, at

Welford Road Stadium Welford Road (currently known as Mattioli Woods Welford Road for sponsorship reasons) is a rugby union stadium in Leicester, England, and is the home ground of Leicester Tigers. The ground was opened on 10 September 1892 and is located between ...

, Leicester on 17 August 1936. Foord then scored a points defeat by Walter Neusel from Germany at

Harringay Arena Harringay Arena was a sporting and events venue on Green Lanes (London), Green Lanes in Harringay, North London, England. Built in 1936, it lasted as a venue until 1958. Construction Harringay Arena was built and owned by Brigadier-General Al ...

, London on 18 November 1936. Next he scored another a points victory over

Tommy Farr Thomas George Farr (12 March 1913 – 1 March 1986) was a Welsh boxer from Clydach Vale, Rhondda, nicknamed "The Tonypandy Terror". Prior to 1936, Farr boxed in the light heavyweight division, in which he was the Welsh champion. He became Br ...

defending the (BBBoFC) at

, London on 15 March 1937. Another TKO defeat by Max Baer from the USA at Harringay Arena on 27 May 1937. Then a points defeat by

Max Schmeling Maximilian Adolph Otto Siegfried Schmeling (, ; 28 September 1905 – 2 February 2005) was a German boxing, boxer who was heavyweight champion of the world between 1930 and 1932. His two fights with Joe Louis in 1936 and 1938 were worldwide cul ...

of Germany at Hanseatenhalle,

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

, Germany on 30 January 1938. Then a disqualification defeat by Walter Neusel of Germany at Hanseatenhalle, Hamburg, Germany on 16 April 1938. He the had two more wins, followed by two defeats, Foord then travelled back home to South Africa, with a points win over Buck Everett of the USA at Wembley Ice Rink, Johannesburg on 5 August 1939. Foord then lost by points to Tommy Bensch for the (BBBoFC) at City Hall, Johannesburg on 20 January 1940. Ben Foord's final professional boxing bout was a points victory over Tom Porter at City Hall in Johannesburg on 15 June 1940. A British heavyweight title, and a British Empire heavyweight title.

Family

Ben Foord's marriage to Phyllis M. ( Souter) was registered during October→December 1937 in Upton-upon-Severn district. He was the brother of the boxer Joe Foord.

Death

After retiring from boxing, Foord joined the army. While at home on leave, he was playing a

practical joke A practical joke or prank is a trick played on people, generally causing the victim to experience embarrassment, perplexity, confusion, or discomfort.Marsh, Moira. 2015. ''Practically Joking''. Logan: Utah State University Press. The perpetrat ...

by sneaking up on his wife Phyllis with a

pistol A pistol is a type of handgun, characterised by a gun barrel, barrel with an integral chamber (firearms), chamber. The word "pistol" derives from the Middle French ''pistolet'' (), meaning a small gun or knife, and first appeared in the Englis ...

and pretending to be a desperado. Foord then attempted gunspinning in the

American frontier The American frontier, also known as the Old West, and popularly known as the Wild West, encompasses the Geography of the United States, geography, History of the United States, history, Folklore of the United States, folklore, and Cultur ...

style and accidentally shot himself in the face, killing himself.

References

External links

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Image - Ben FoordImage - Ben FoordVideo - Foord V Neusel Fight 1936Video - News In A Nutshell 1936Video - Heavy Weight Championship 1936Video - British Empire Heavyweight Championship 1936Video - Baer V Foord - Fight At Haringey Aka Fight… 1937Video - Heavyweight Championship 1937Video - Heavyweight Fight - Schmeling Beats Foord… 1938Article - Ben Foord's DeathArticle - Death Said Accident ~ Ben Foord Died Of Bullet Would, Inquest Reveals
{{DEFAULTSORT:Foord, Ben 1913 births 1942 deaths People from Phumelela Local Municipality White South African people Cruiserweight boxers Heavyweight boxers Light-heavyweight boxers South African male boxers Firearm accident victims Accidental deaths in South Africa Deaths by firearm in South Africa South African military personnel of World War II 20th-century South African sportsmen