James Oyebola (10 June 1961 – 27 July 2007) was a Nigerian and British heavyweight

boxer Boxer most commonly refers to: * Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing *Boxer (dog), a breed of dog Boxer or boxers may also refer to: Animal kingdom * Boxer crab * Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans * Boxer snipe ee ...

who won a bronze medal at the

1986 Commonwealth Games The 1986 Commonwealth Games ( gd, Geamannan a 'Cho-fhlaitheis 1986) were held in Edinburgh, Scotland, between 24 July and 2 August 1986. They were the second Games to be held in Edinburgh. Thirty two of the eligible fifty nine countries (largel ...

in the

super heavyweight Super heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and competitive bodybuilding. Boxing In amateur boxing, the super heavyweight division is a weight class division for fighters weighing in excess of 91 kilograms (200 pounds). Introduced for th ...

division. Oyebola was the British heavyweight champion from 1994 to 1996. Oyebola was born in

Lagos Lagos (Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the List of cities in Africa by population, second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national ca ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

. Standing 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) tall, with a reach of 85 inches (2.16 m), he fought in the orthodox stance and won 18 of his 23 fights, 16 by knock out, losing four and drawing one. He was pronounced

brain dead Brain death is the permanent, irreversible, and complete loss of brain function which may include cessation of involuntary activity necessary to sustain life. It differs from persistent vegetative state, in which the person is alive and some aut ...

after injuries sustained by gunshot wounds to his head after a nightclub altercation. He was based in

Paddington Paddington is an area within the City of Westminster, in Central London. First a medieval parish then a metropolitan borough, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965. Three important landmarks of the district are Paddi ...

during his career.

Amateur career

Oyebola was the ABA Super Heavyweight Champion in 1986 and 1987.

Pro career

Oyebola won the WBC International Heavyweight title in 1993 and the vacant British Heavyweight title on 19 November 1994 at the National Ice Rink,

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

when he knocked out Clifton Mitchell in 4 rounds. His last fight, in 1996, was a defeat to

Julius Francis Julius Francis (born 8 December 1964) is a British former professional boxer who participated in many noteworthy boxing matches in the mid 90s and 2000s. In 2007, he also participated in a mixed martial arts bout, having been a former European ...

. He was nicknamed "Big Bad" during his career.

Personal life

Oyebola fathered two children by Malin Bergstrom, both born in

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

, London: Kristel Regina Oyebola (born 1994) and James Babatunde Oyebola (born 1999).

Murder

Oyebola was shot in the back of the neck and leg in the early hours of 23 July 2007 after an altercation in the Chateau 6 club at

Fulham Broadway Walham Green is the historic name of an English village, now part of inner London, in the parish of Fulham in the County of Middlesex. It was located between the hamlet of North End (now renamed West Kensington) to the north, and Parsons ...

where he was visiting a friend for a drink. He had gone to assist staff asking four customers in the rear courtyard to put out their cigarettes to observe the recently imposed

smoking ban Smoking bans, or smoke-free laws, are public policies, including criminal laws and occupational safety and health regulations, that prohibit tobacco smoking in certain spaces. The spaces most commonly affected by smoking bans are indoor work ...

and was shot as they left the premises. Simon Block, general secretary of the

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. ...

, paid the following tribute: "Throughout that time he was truly one of nature's gentlemen and to think of him lying in a hospital bed fighting for his life as a result of a cowardly and gutless attack by those who will not have been possessed of the same courage that he showed in the way he faced adversity, in and out of the ring, fills me with both sadness and dismay." Oyebola's family decided that they would turn off his life support machine on 27 July 2007 at 11:30 am (10:30 GMT) after he was pronounced brain dead on 26 July 2007. It was announced at 12:39 pm on 27 July 2007 that James Oyebola had died, at

Charing Cross Hospital Charing Cross Hospital is an acute general teaching hospital located in Hammersmith, London, United Kingdom. The present hospital was opened in 1973, although it was originally established in 1818, approximately five miles east, in central Lond ...

, after his life support machine had been switched off. His funeral was held on 10 September 2007.

Aftermath

Four men were charged with Oyebola's murder, but charges against two, Rene McKoy and Dean Francis, were dropped. Kanyanta Mubanga Mulenga (born 1985,

Wandsworth Wandsworth Town () is a district of south London, within the London Borough of Wandsworth southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan The London Plan is the statutory spatial development strategy for the Gre ...

, London) was convicted on 8 October 2008 of his murder and has been sentenced to 28 years in prison. A fourth man, who can not be named for legal reasons, was expected to stand trial in 2009 for James' murder. The Oyebola family have said they will establish a charity foundation in James Oyebola's name aimed at helping direct youngsters towards a brighter future.

Professional boxing record

, style="text-align:center;" colspan="8", 18 Wins (16 knockouts, 2 decisions), 4 Losses (4 knockouts), 1 Draws , - style="text-align:center; background:#e3e3e3;" , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Res. , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Record , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Opponent , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Type , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Rd. , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Date , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Location , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Notes , - align=center , Loss , 18–4-1 , align=left,

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 18–3-1 , align=left,

Scott Welch Scott Roy Welch (born 21 April 1968) is a retired British professional boxer. As an amateur, Welch became one of the ABA champions at heavyweight. He travelled the world as a professional boxer, winning the Southern Area belt, the British, Com ...

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 18–2-1 , align=left, Keith McMurray , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 17–2-1 , align=left, Clifton Mitchell , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 16–2-1 , align=left,

, , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 15–2-1 , align=left, Ladislao Mijangos , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 14–2-1 , align=left, Jimmy Bills , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 13–2-1 , align=left, Roger McKenzie , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 12–2-1 , align=left, Denroy Bryan , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 11–2-1 , align=left, Bombaphani Bonyongo Destroyer , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 10–2-1 , align=left, Stan Campbell , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 9–2-1 , align=left, John Westgarth , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 9–1-1 , align=left, Art Terry , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 8–1-1 , align=left, John Westgarth , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 7–1-1 , align=left, Everton Champion Christian , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 6–1-1 , align=left, Dorcy Gaymon , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 5–1-1 , align=left, Tee Lewis , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Draw , 4–1-1 , align=left, Andrew Gerrard , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 4–1 , align=left, Denroy Bryan , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Loss , 3–1 , align=left, Mike Jones , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 3–0 , align=left, Carl Timbrell , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 2–0 , align=left, Ian Priest , , , , align=left, , align=left, , - align=center , Win , 1–0 , align=left, Andrew Gerrard , , , , align=left, , align=left,

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Oyebola, James 1961 births 2007 deaths Boxers at the 1986 Commonwealth Games British murder victims Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for England Deaths by firearm in London Heavyweight boxers Male murder victims Nigerian expatriates in the United Kingdom Nigerian male boxers Sportspeople from Lagos Yoruba sportspeople People murdered in London Nigerian emigrants to the United Kingdom Black British sportspeople England Boxing champions British male boxers Nigerian people murdered abroad Commonwealth Games medallists in boxing