A Sad Day For Sport-The News of Sir Henry Cooper's Passing

It was a sad day for sport to hear the news that Sir Henry Cooper, the Heavyweight boxing legend, died aged 76 on Sunday May 1^st at his son’s house in Oxted in Surrey.

He was born in London in 1934 and in 1952 at the age of 18 he appeared in the Helsinki Olympics. Both he and his twin brother George (who died last year) turned professional boxers at the age of 20.

 

Cooper’s most famous fight was in 1963 at Wembley when he knocked down Cassius Clay who was later to be known as Muhammad Ali. Cooper’s trademark left hook, known as “Enry’s Ammer” is what floored Ali in the fourth round of this fight but Ali eventually went on to win it.

Cooper, the former British, Commonwealth and European champion had a successful career and he actually fought 55 times in total although he never won a world title. He retired in 1971 at the age of 36 after he lost to Joe Bugner (another boxing legend), a year after he was named as the first person to become a two time winner of the BBC Sports Personality Of The Year Award.

After his retirement he had a successful career in TV as a pundit and also became a popular team captain on the BBC’s quiz show “A Question Of Sport”.

Upon hearing of the death of Sir Henry Cooper, Muhammad Ali said that he was “at a loss for words” over the death of his friend. "Henry always had a smile for me; a warm and embracing smile", he said. "It was always a pleasure being in Henry's company. I will miss my old friend. He was a great fighter and a gentleman."

Barry McGuigan, a former world featherweight champion from Ireland also paid tribute to Cooper. He told the BBC "He was a lovely fella, and I was a personal friend of him and his wife.

"It really is tragic news for the world of boxing. What a great man he was."

Sir Henry Cooper will not be forgotten and will always remain a true ambassador for the sport.