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Richard Kenneth Gunn (16 February 1871 – 23 June 1961) was a
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
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 ...
, and is the oldest man to win an
Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...
boxing crown ever. He achieved this feat at the age of 37 years and 254 days.


Biography

He was born in
Charing Cross Charing Cross ( ) is a junction in Westminster, London, England, where six routes meet. Clockwise from north these are: the east side of Trafalgar Square leading to St Martin's Place and then Charing Cross Road; the Strand leading to the City; ...
,
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
and died in
Lambeth Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, in the London Borough of Lambeth, historically in the County of Surrey. It is situated south of Charing Cross. The population of the London Borough of Lambeth was 303,086 in 2011. The area expe ...
, London. Gunn took up boxing at the Surrey Commercial Docks Boxing Club in 1893 after joining his father's East End tailoring business. He won the 1894, 1895 and 1896
Amateur Boxing Association England Boxing, known until 2013 as the Amateur Boxing Association of England, is the Sports governing body, governing body of amateur boxing clubs in England. There are separate organisations for Scotland and Wales with boxing in Northern Irela ...
British featherweight title, when boxing out of the various clubs. He was so much better than his rivals at the time that authorities asked him to retire after he won his third ABA title. Gunn did so, but in 1908, having served on the ABA council for more than ten years, he returned to win the Olympic title before hanging up his gloves for good. Gunn died in London aged 90, having only lost one fight in fifteen years.


1908 Olympic results

Below is the record of Richard Gunn, a British featherweight boxer who competed at the 1908 London Olympics: * Quarterfinal: defeated Etienne Poillot (France) by second-round knockout * Semifinal: defeated Thomas Ringer (Great Britain) by decision, 2-0 * Final: defeated Charles Morris (Great Britain) by decision, 2-0 (won gold medal)


References


External links

* * 1871 births 1961 deaths Boxers from Greater London English male boxers Featherweight boxers Olympic boxers for Great Britain Boxers at the 1908 Summer Olympics English Olympic medallists Olympic gold medallists for Great Britain Olympic medalists in boxing Medalists at the 1908 Summer Olympics England Boxing champions {{England-boxing-bio-stub