Errol Christie (29 June 1963 – 11 June 2017) was an English

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 ...

and boxing trainer. He was the captain of the English

amateur boxing Amateur boxing is the variant of boxing practiced in clubs and associations around the world, at the Olympic Games, Pan American Games and Commonwealth Games, as well as at the varsity sports, collegiate level. Amateur boxing bouts comprise three ...

team from 1980 to 1983 and European amateur champion in 1983. After turning professional he was a regular fixture on ''ITV Fight Night'' in the 1980s. After retiring from boxing he became a trainer in

white-collar boxing White-collar boxing is a form of boxing in which people in white-collar professions train to fight at special events. Most have had no prior boxing experience. Early history White-collar boxing has its beginnings at Gleason's Gym in New York C ...

Career

Boxing career

Christie was born in

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 ...

and raised in Radford, Coventry, one of seven brothers.Arnot, Chris (2010)
'Talking to teenagers was more terrifying than boxing'
, ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', 12 May 2010. Retrieved 26 July 2015Eccleston, Ben (2015)
Coventry boxing legend Errol Christie facing biggest fight of his life after being diagnosed with lung cancer
, ''

Coventry Telegraph The ''Coventry Telegraph'' is a local English tabloid newspaper. It is published by Coventry Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Reach PLC Midlands Ltd, along with a number of other local publications. Publication history It was founded as ' ...

'', 20 March 2015. Retrieved 26 July 2015 At the age of eight, he started boxing at the Standard-Triumph gym in

Coventry Coventry ( or rarely ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centurie ...

managed by Tom McGarry. Out of 80 fights in his early career, Christie lost only two and gained a reputation for early knockouts.As Errol Christie battles cancer, his son Louie Christie prepares for his own fight
, ''Boxing News'', 23 July 2015. Retrieved 26 July 2015 He was

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...

champion in 1976, schoolboy champion in 1977, NABC champion in 1979 and senior ABA champion in 1981, beating Cameron Lithgow in the final. He was appointed England boxing captain from 1980 to 1983. He moved to London in 1981 to further his boxing career. In 1982, he became European amateur under-19 champion after defeating Assylbek Kilimov in the semi-finals and Moe Gruciano in the finals at

Schwerin Schwerin (; Mecklenburgisch-Vorpommersch dialect, Mecklenburgisch-Vorpommersch Low German: ''Swerin''; Polabian language, Polabian: ''Zwierzyn''; Latin: ''Suerina'', ''Suerinum'') is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Germ ...

in what was then

East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

.Bunce, Steve (2015)
Audley Harrison's abusers forget the debt he's due, but Errol Christie will always remember what he owes the police
, ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', 31 March 2015. Retrieved 26 July 2015 Christie was listed in '' The Guinness Book of Records'' as the only British boxer to win all 10 amateur titles. After turning professional in 1982 with new manager Burt McCarthy he won his first 13 fights, 12 inside the distance, including a victory over French champion Joel Bonnetaz in February 1984. He earned the right to wear the Kronk Gym golden shorts after impressing its promoter Emanuel Steward while sparring there. In September 1984 Jose Seys delivered a surprise knockout which shook Christie's confidence. Seven more wins followed, including a win over former Mexican champion Gonzalo Montes, before a bout with Mark Kaylor in a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

middleweight Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to . Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have beg ...

title eliminator at

Wembley Arena Wembley Arena () (originally the Empire Pool, currently known as OVO Energy, OVO Arena Wembley for sponsorship reasons) is an indoor arena next to Wembley Stadium in Wembley, Greater London, England. The 12,500-seat facility is Greater Lond ...

in November 1985 in which he was knocked out in the eighth round. After winning his next four fights, beating Nigerian champion Hunter Clay and former

welterweight Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term ''welterweight'' was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify th ...

world title challenger Sean Mannion, he suffered another setback when he was stopped by Charles Boston in December 1986. He won eight of his thirteen fights between June 1987 and October 1990, and in November 1990 faced

Michael Watson Michael Watson (born 15 March 1965) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 1984 to 1991. He held the Commonwealth Boxing Council, Commonwealth middleweight title from 1989 to 1991, and challenged three times for a world titl ...

at the

National Exhibition Centre The National Exhibition Centre (NEC) is an exhibition centre located in Marston Green, England, near to Birmingham and Solihull. It is near junction 6 of the M42 motorway, and is adjacent to Birmingham Airport and Birmingham International rail ...

; Watson stopped him in the third round. Christie was out of the ring for over two years, returning in March 1993 to face Trevor Ambrose, losing after being stopped in the second round of what proved to be his final fight.

Post-boxing career

Christie had tried his hand at stand up comedy towards the end of his boxing career and after retiring from boxing in 1993 he worked as a market trader for six years.Lee, Veronica (2010)
Boxing: My weapons were my fists – now it's guns and knives
, ''

'', 6 June 2010. Retrieved 26 July 2015 In 1999, Christie began teaching white-collar boxers, initially at the Real Fight Club, and from 2003 at Gymbox in

Holborn Holborn ( or ), an area in central London, covers the south-eastern part of the London Borough of Camden and a part (St Andrew Holborn (parish), St Andrew Holborn Below the Bars) of the Wards of the City of London, Ward of Farringdon Without i ...

, London. In 2005, ''

'' and other newspapers reported an incident where one of Errol's white collar-boxing students, film distributor Simon Franks, hit Hollywood actor

George Clooney George Timothy Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an American actor, filmmaker, and philanthropist. Known for his leading man roles on screen in both blockbuster and independent films, Clooney has received numerous accolades, including two Ac ...

at the premiere of his film '' Good Night, and Good Luck''. An argument between the two men was alleged to have got out of control. Christie was quoted in ''The Guardian'' asking whether his student, Franks, had used his left hook. His students have included TV presenter

Dermot O'Leary Seán Dermot O'Leary (born 24 May 1973) is a British-Irish broadcaster. He presented the television talent show ''The X Factor'' on ITV from 2007 until its final series in 2018, with the exception of 2015. Since 2021, O'Leary has presented ITV' ...

, former footballer Gianluca Vialli, musician

Seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, also called "true seal" ** Fur seal ** Eared seal * Seal ( ...

, and journalist Tony McMahon. He also worked with children in schools and community centres. In 2010, Christie was taken on as the fight consultant to the play ''Sucker Punch'' written by Roy Williams and directed by Sacha Wares, performed at the

Royal Court Theatre The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a West End theatre#London's non-commercial theatres, non-commercial theatre in Sloane Square, London, England, opene ...

Chelsea, London Chelsea is an area in West London, England, due south-west of Kilometre zero#Great Britain, Charing Cross by approximately . It lies on the north bank of the River Thames and for postal purposes is part of the SW postcode area, south-western p ...

. In March 2010, Christie published his biography ''No Place To Hide'', about racism in both the boxing game and 1970s/1980s Britain in collaboration with McMahon. The book was longlisted for the William Hill sports writer prize for 2010.

Personal life

Christie was the uncle of Cyrus Christie, a professional footballer for

Hull City A.F.C. Hull City Association Football Club is a professional association football club based in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. They compete in the , the second level of the English football league system. They play their home ...

and the Irish national team.

Illness and death

In March 2015 Christie was diagnosed with

small-cell lung cancer Small-cell carcinoma, also known as oat cell carcinoma, is a type of highly malignant cancer that most commonly arises within the lung, although it can occasionally arise in other body sites, such as the cervix, prostate, and gastrointestinal tr ...

. He died at St. Christopher's Hospice in London on 11 June 2017 of complications from the disease, aged 53.

Professional boxing record

, - , 41 , Loss , 32–8–1 , style="text-align:left;", Trevor Ambrose , KO , 2 (6) , ? , 19 Mar 1993 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 40 , Loss , 32–7–1 , style="text-align:left;",

, TKO , 3 (10) , ? , 18 Nov 1990 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 39 , Draw , 32–6–1 , style="text-align:left;", Stan King , PTS , 8 , N/a , 18 Oct 1990 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 38 , Win , 32–6 , style="text-align:left;", Karl Barwise , RTD , 7 (8) , 3:00 , 22 Sep 1990 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 37 , Loss , 31–6 , style="text-align:left;", Ian Strudwick , PTS , 8 , N/a , 20 Jun 1990 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 36 , Win , 31–5 , style="text-align:left;", Thomas Covington , RTD , 4 (8) , 3:00 , 9 May 1990 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 35 , Win , 30–5 , style="text-align:left;", Martin Camara , PTS , 8 , N/a , 24 Oct 1989 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 34 , Loss , 29–5 , style="text-align:left;", James Cook , TKO , 5 (8) , ? , 31 Jan 1989 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 33 , Win , 29–4 , style="text-align:left;", Winston Burnett , PTS , 8 , N/a , 26 Oct 1988 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 32 , Win , 28–4 , style="text-align:left;", Joe McKenzie , KO , 3 (8) , 0:55 , 28 Sep 1988 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 31 , Win , 27–4 , style="text-align:left;", Andy Wright , KO , 2 (8) , ? , 30 Mar 1988 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 30 , Loss , 26–4 , style="text-align:left;", Jose Quinones , KO , 4 (8) , ? , 28 Nov 1987 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 29 , Win , 26–3 , style="text-align:left;", Rafael Corona , KO , 1 (8) , ? , 16 Sep 1987 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 28 , Win , 25–3 , style="text-align:left;", Tyrone McKnight , TKO , 5 (10) , ? , 17 Jun 1987 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 27 , Loss , 24–3 , style="text-align:left;", Charles Boston , KO , 8 (10) , 2:10 , 3 Dec 1986 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 26 , Win , 24–2 , style="text-align:left;", Sean Mannion , PTS , 10 , N/a , 29 Oct 1986 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 25 , Win , 23–2 , style="text-align:left;", Adam George , PTS , 10 , N/a , 20 Sep 1986 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 24 , Win , 22–2 , style="text-align:left;", Carlton Warren , TKO , 5 (8) , ? , 28 May 1986 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 23 , Win , 21–2 , style="text-align:left;", Hunter Clay , PTS , 10 , N/a , 16 Apr 1986 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 22 , Loss , 20–2 , style="text-align:left;", Mark Kaylor , KO , 8 (12) , 2:35 , 5 Nov 1985 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 21 , Win , 20–1 , style="text-align:left;", Barry Audia , TKO , 2 (10) , 2:34 , 18 Sep 1985 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 20 , Win , 19–1 , style="text-align:left;", Vincent Mays , TKO , 1 (8) , 2:34 , 30 May 1985 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 19 , Win , 18–1 , style="text-align:left;", Ignacio Zavala , TKO , 1 (10) , 2:53 , 7 Mar 1985 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 18 , Win , 17–1 , style="text-align:left;", Nestor Flores , KO , 2 (10) , 2:40 , 2 Feb 1985 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 17 , Win , 16–1 , style="text-align:left;", Gonzalo Montes , TKO , 3 (10) , ? , 16 Jan 1985 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 16 , Win , 15–1 , style="text-align:left;", Cecil Pettigrew , TKO , 1 (8) , 0:36 , 15 Nov 1984 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 15 , Win , 14–1 , style="text-align:left;", Bobby Hoye , KO , 1 (10) , 1:11 , 1 Nov 1984 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 14 , Loss , 13–1 , style="text-align:left;", Jose Seys , KO , 1 (8) , 0:46 , 19 Sep 1984 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 13 , Win , 13–0 , style="text-align:left;", Stan White , TKO , 5 (10) , 1:10 , 15 Jun 1984 , style="text-align:left;", , , - , 12 , Win , 12–0 , style="text-align:left;", Stacy McSwain , TKO , 5 (10) , ? , 25 Apr 1984 , style="text-align:left;", ,

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Christie, Errol Black British sportsmen English male boxers English people of Jamaican descent Sportspeople of Jamaican descent Middleweight boxers Sportspeople from Coventry Boxers from Leicester 1963 births 2017 deaths Deaths from lung cancer in England England Boxing champions 20th-century English sportsmen