Kelvin Seabrooks (born March 10, 1963 in

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

) is a retired American

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 the

International Boxing Federation The International Boxing Federation (IBF) is one of four major organizations recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) which sanctions professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Counci ...

bantamweight title and defended it four times.

Boxing career

Amateur career

Seabrooks started boxing with the local Police Athletic League at age 11. Seabrooks went to win four N.C. Golden Gloves championships. A highlight of his boxing career was winning a bronze medal at the 1980 Olympic trials; however, he didn't get to go to the Olympics. President Jimmy Carter boycotted the Summer Olympics in Moscow that year to protest the December 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

Professional career

Seabrooks turned professional in 1981. In 1987, Seabrooks won the United States Boxing Association bantamweight championship, but gave up his title to compete in the world championship. He became the International Boxing Federation world bantamweight champion that year with a fifth-round knockout of Miguel Maturana in Cartagena, Colombia. His first title defense against Frenchman Thierry Jacob, ended in controversy as it was initially declared a draw but later ruled on as a win for Seabrooks. His next defense was more straight forward beating filipino contender Ernie Cataluna via fourth round stoppage. He would eventually lose the title to

Orlando Canizales Orlando Canizales (born November 25, 1965) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1984 to 1999. He held the IBF bantamweight title between July 1988 and December 1994. Early life Canizales who is of Mexican descent was born ...

in 1988. Seabrooks retired in 1995 after six consecutive losses.

Professional boxing record

Later life

Seabrooks retired from boxing in 1995 and was inducted into the Carolinas Boxing Hall of Fame in 2003. He now works as a security guard at Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools and trains boxers. He also gives motivational speeches to students. Seabrooks is also in the process of establishing a nonprofit organization called Kelvin Seabrooks Sports & Education Center, Inc., to provide mentorship, tutoring and recreational programs to help kids succeed. The center's mission will be to provide a safe haven in the community for youth to enhance their abilities and skills, leading them on the right track toward the future, said Seabrooks. Seabrooks lives with his wife in east Charlotte.

References

External links

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Seabrooks, Kelvin 1963 births Living people American male boxers African-American boxers Sportspeople from Charlotte, North Carolina Boxers from North Carolina Super-bantamweight boxers World bantamweight boxing champions International Boxing Federation champions