Kim Deuk-bong (Korean김득봉; born 20 January 1934) is a South Korean former boxer who competed as a light welterweight in the 1960 Summer Olympics. Kim lost his fourth fight, the quarterfinal match, to eventual silver-medalist Clement Quartey of Ghana.[1]

Kim Deuk-bong
김득봉
Personal information
Full nameKim Deuk-bong
NationalitySouth Korean
Born (1934-01-20) January 20, 1934 (age 90)
Geoje, South Gyeongsang, South Korea
Height1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Sport
SportBoxing
Weight classLight welterweight
Medal record
Asian Games
Gold medal – first place 1962 Jakarta Light welterweight
Bronze medal – third place 1958 Tokyo Light welterweight
Kim Deuk-bong
Hangul
김득봉
Hanja
金得鳳
Revised RomanizationKim Tŭk-bong
McCune–ReischauerGim Deuk-bong

Amateur career edit

Kim first drew attention at the 1958 Asian Games in Tokyo where he protested against a decision by refusing to leave the ring after losing a controversial decision. When Kim fought Shigemasa Kawakami of Japan in the semifinal bout, he dominated his opponent in every round. However, when the judges' scores came up, Kim was judged to have lost to Kawakami. Seconds after the decision was made, Kim's entourage rushed the ring and his supporters in the stands began rioting, fighting with staff and policemen. Afterwards, Kim didn't leave the ring, sitting on a stool in his corner for hours.[2]

At the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, Kim lost to eventual silver medalist Clement Quartey of Ghana by split decision in the quarterfinal match.

Kim won the gold medal in light welterweight at the 1962 Asian Games in Jakarta. At the 1964 Olympic Trials, Kim failed to qualify for his second Olympics, disqualified at the weigh-in for being over the light welterweight limit (under 63.5 kg) before the final bout.[3]

Results edit

1960 Summer Olympics
Event Round Result Opponent Score
Light welterweight First Win   Sawong Mongkolrit KO 2
Second Win   Raoul Sarrazin DSQ
Third Win   Miguel Amarista TKO 2
Quarterfinal Loss   Clement Quartey 2-3

Professional career edit

After the 1964 Olympic trials, Kim subsequently made his professional debut in August 1964. In October 1964 Kim faced his fellow-Olympian and future world light middleweight champion Kim Ki-soo, and earned a draw. After six bouts, Kim fought future world light welterweight champion Takeshi Fuji in a non-title bout on January 20, 1966 in Tokyo. He was knocked out by the Japanese-Hawaiian legend in the 2nd round. After several lackluster competitions, Kim hung up his gloves.

References edit

  1. ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Kim Deuk-bong". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 11 August 2017. Retrieved 3 November 2017.
  2. ^ "Kim Loses Controversial Decision At Asian Games", Dong-a Ilbo (in Korean), p. 5, 1958-06-01
  3. ^ "1964 Olympic Trials in Boxing", Dong-a Ilbo (in Korean), p. 4, 1964-04-28