Richard Green (c. 1937 – July 1, 1983) was an American professional

boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermine ...

referee. He officiated several major bouts, such as

Muhammad Ali vs. Larry Holmes Larry Holmes vs. Muhammad Ali, billed as "The Last Hurrah!", was a professional boxing bout contested on October 2, 1980 in Las Vegas for the WBC and vacant ''The Ring'' heavyweight championships. Background Larry Holmes was Ali's sparring pa ...

in 1980. He was the referee for the lightweight world title fight between defending champion

Ray Mancini Ray Mancini (born Raymond Michael Mancino; March 4, 1961), best known as "Boom Boom" Mancini, is an American former professional boxer who competed professionally from 1979 to 1992 and who has since worked as an actor and sports commentator. He ...

and challenger

Duk Koo Kim Kim Duk-koo (Hangul:김득구; born Lee Deokgu, Hangul: 이덕구; July 29, 1955November 18, 1982) was a South Korean boxer who died after fighting in a world championship boxing match against Ray Mancini. His death sparked reforms aimed at bette ...

, which caused Kim's death four days after the fight ended. Green committed suicide several months later.

Background

Green was a native of

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a U.S. state, state in the Deep South and South Central United States, South Central regions of the United States. It is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 20th-smal ...

and a

Golden Gloves The Golden Gloves is the name given to annual competitions for amateur boxing in the United States, where they are awarded a belt and a ring. And the title of nations champion is awarded. The Golden Gloves is a term used to refer to the Nationa ...

boxer in the 1960s.

Career as referee

Green presided over several notable fights. One of these was

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, ...

's loss to

Larry Holmes Larry Holmes (born November 3, 1949) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1973 to 2002 and was world heavyweight champion from 1978 until 1985. He grew up in Easton, Pennsylvania, which led to his boxing nickname of the "E ...

in 1980. Green officiated two high-profile fights in 1982. Early in the year, he refereed

Wilfred Benítez Wilfred "Wilfredo" Benítez (born September 12, 1958) is an American-born Puerto Rican former professional boxer and the youngest world champion in the sport's history. Earning his first of three career world titles in separate weight divisio ...

's fight against

Roberto Durán Roberto Durán Samaniego (born June 16, 1951) is a Panamanian former professional boxer who competed from 1968 to 2001. He held world championships in four weight classes: lightweight, welterweight, light middleweight and middleweight, as wel ...

for Benitez's super welterweight title. Later, he was the referee in

's first-round knockout of

Arturo Frias Arturo Frias (born October 27, 1955) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1975 to 1985. He held the WBA lightweight title from 1981 to 1982. Boxing career Frias began his professional boxing career on February 7, 1975, one ...

, a win that gave Mancini the WBA

lightweight Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing. Boxing Professional boxing The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) weight class in the sport of boxing. Notable lightweight b ...

championship. On November 13, 1982, Green was assigned to work Mancini's second defense of that title, a match against Korean contender Duk-Koo Kim that was televised across the nation by CBS. The fight ended when Green stopped it after Kim was knocked down early in the fourteenth round, but Kim had taken a severe beating from Mancini throughout the fight and collapsed in the ring shortly thereafter. Four days after the fight, Kim died of massive brain injuries. The Kim-Mancini bout proved to be a watershed in boxing, triggering a series of major changes to the sport. Championship bouts were reduced from 15 to 12 rounds, the

standing eight count A standing eight count, also known as a protection count, is a boxing judgment call made by a referee during a bout. When invoked, the referee stops the action and counts to eight. During that time, the referee will determine if the boxer can ...

was introduced, and fighters had to undergo more stringent medical tests before a match. Green's last fight was a USBA Heavyweight Championship fight on May 20, 1983, that saw Greg Page defeat

Renaldo Snipes Renaldo Snipes (born Reenaold Snipes on August 15, 1956) is an American former boxer, best known for his title championship bout with Larry Holmes. Amateur career Snipes was a two-time Chicago Golden Gloves Champion (1977 and 1978). He lost on a ...

in a 12-round decision. Six weeks later, Green was found dead in his North Las Vegas home. The coroner ruled the death a suicide via self-inflicted gunshot.

References

External links

New York Times' Archive: Richard Green Obituary
1937 births 1983 suicides American boxing referees Suicides by firearm in Nevada Sportspeople from Louisiana American male boxers 1983 deaths {{US-boxing-bio-stub