Richie Woodhall (born 17 April 1968) is a British former
professional boxer
Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional bouts are supervised by a regulatory auth ...
who competed from 1990 to 2000.
He held the
WBC super-middleweight
Super middleweight, or light cruiserweight, is a weight class in combat sports.
Boxing
In professional boxing, super middleweight is contested between the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions, in which boxers can weigh between 160 pounds ( ...
title from 1998 to 1999, as well as the
Commonwealth
A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...
middleweight
Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports.
Boxing Professional
In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to .
Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have beg ...
title from 1992 to 1995, and the
European
European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to:
In general
* ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe
** Ethnic groups in Europe
** Demographics of Europe
** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...
middleweight title from 1995 to 1996. As an
amateur
An amateur () is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, self-taught, user-generated, DIY, and hobbyist.
History
Hist ...
, Woodhall won a gold medal at the
1990 Commonwealth Games and bronze at the
1988 Summer Olympics
The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...
, both in the
light-middleweight
Light middleweight, also known as junior middleweight or super welterweight,PeBoxRec/ref> is a weight class in combat sports.
Boxing
The light middleweight division (also known as junior middleweight in the IBF or super welterweight in the WBA a ...
division.
Following his retirement from the sport, Woodhall has developed a broadcasting career with both the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
and
BT Sport
BT Sport is a group of pay television sports channels in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Owned by Warner Bros. Discovery Sports Europe and BT Group, they first launched on 1 August 2013. The channels are based at the former International Broad ...
as a sports pundit, on both television and radio. He currently co-commentates with
Mike Costello on radio for some shows, while co-commentating with
John Rawling on
Setanta Sports
Setanta Sports is a sports television company based in Dublin, Ireland broadcasting throughout select Eurasian. The company was formed in 1990 to facilitate the broadcasting of Irish sporting events to international audiences. The company previo ...
at other times. He was also involved with the
2012 Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
held in London, commentating on the fights alongside
Jim Neilly and coaching the Olympic boxing squad. After appearing as a body double for
Brad Pitt
William Bradley Pitt (born December 18, 1963) is an American actor and film producer. He is the recipient of various accolades, including two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Primetime Emmy Award. ...
in the 2000 film ''
Snatch'', he has dedicated himself to developing as a performer.
Amateur career
*
Olympic Games
The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...
Bronze Medalist, Seoul South Korea 1988, losing to
Roy Jones, Jr..
*
Commonwealth Games
The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...
Gold Medallist, Auckland New Zealand 1990
*England International Contests – 43
Olympic results
**1st round bye
**Defeated
Desmond Williams (Sierra Leone) 5-0
**Defeated
Apolinario Silveira (Angola) 5-0
**Defeated
Rey Rivera (Puerto Rico) 5-0
**Lost to
Roy Jones Jr.
Roy Levesta Jones Jr. (born January 16, 1969) is an American former professional boxer who holds dual American and Russian citizenship. He competed in boxing from 1989 to 2018, and held multiple world championships in four weight classes, incl ...
(United States) 5-0
Professional career
Woodhall turned pro in 1990 and was undefeated as the Commonwealth Middleweight Champion from 1992 to 1995. He was then undefeated as the European Middleweight Champion from 1995 to 1996.
Woodhall defeated a number of useful fighters during this period, including; Future World Super Middle and World Light Heavyweight Champion
Silvio Branco
Silvio Branco (born 26 August 1966) is an Italian former professional boxer of Romani origin.
Career
1992 he was outpointed by undefeated southpaw Agostino Cardamone for the Italian middleweight title.
When Cardamone vacated he could win the v ...
,
Art Serwarno,
Heath Todd,
Jacques LeBlanc
Jacques LeBlanc (born August 5, 1964 in Memramcook, New Brunswick, Canada) is a Canadian retired Middleweight Boxer. LeBlanc is of Acadian ancestry.
Early career
LeBlanc started his boxing career in 1982, Knocking out Tim Parson in 2 rounds. ...
,
Zdravko Kostic,
Derek Wormald,
Vito Gaudiosi and
Royan Hammond.
In late 1996 he fought WBC middleweight title holder
Keith Holmes. Woodhall went into this fight carrying an injury, but took the fight anyway. Woodhall did not perform as well has he might otherwise have, losing by 12th-round TKO.
In 1998 he moved up to Super Middleweight and after a tune up against
Bernice Barber captured the WBC super middleweight title with a unanimous decision win over
Thulani Malinga.
He successfully defended the title twice, defeating fellow Briton and future World Champion
Glenn Catley and former World Champ
Vincenzo Nardiello before losing it to
Markus Beyer by decision in 1999, a fight in which Woodhall was down in the 1st and twice in the 3rd. Woodhall rallied late in the fight and came close to stopping Beyer, however his revival came too late.
Woodhall bounced back with a win over the experienced
Errol McDonald, setting him up for his final bout against
Joe Calzaghe
Joseph William Calzaghe ( ; born 23 March 1972) is a Welsh former professional boxer who competed from 1993 to 2008. He held world championships in two weight classes, including the unified WBA (Undisputed), WBC, IBF, WBO, '' Ring'' magazi ...
for the
WBO super middleweight title.
Woodhall was TKO'd in 10 rounds by
Joe Calzaghe
Joseph William Calzaghe ( ; born 23 March 1972) is a Welsh former professional boxer who competed from 1993 to 2008. He held world championships in two weight classes, including the unified WBA (Undisputed), WBC, IBF, WBO, '' Ring'' magazi ...
in an exciting fight in which Calzaghe always had the edge.
Woodhall retired after this bout which took place on 16 December 2000.
Personal life
Woodhall grew up in
Woodside, Telford but also lived in
Malinslee and attended the local
Abraham Darby School. He is also a keen supporter of
West Bromwich Albion F.C. He currently resides in Lightmoor, Telford, Shropshire.
Woodhall also is a reporter for
BBC Midlands' Inside Out Programme . He is married to childhood sweetheart Jayne and has 3 children, Jack, Jake and eldest daughter and aspiring actress Amy Woodhall, who has appeared in television shows such as
Emmerdale
''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British soap opera that is broadcast on ITV1. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffan, ' ...
and
Coronation Street.
In film
Woodhall was a
body double
In filmmaking, a double is a person who substitutes FOR another actor such that the person's face is not shown. There are various terms associated with a double based on the specific body part or ability they serve as a double for, such as stunt ...
for
Brad Pitt
William Bradley Pitt (born December 18, 1963) is an American actor and film producer. He is the recipient of various accolades, including two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Primetime Emmy Award. ...
in a fight scene in the movie ''
Snatch'', directed by
Guy Ritchie
Guy Stuart Ritchie (born 10 September 1968) is an English film director, producer and screenwriter. His work includes British gangster films, and the ''Sherlock Holmes'' films starring Robert Downey Jr.
Ritchie left school at age 15 and wo ...
. He trained
Matthew Marsden for his role in the movie ''
Shiner''.
Professional boxing record
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Woodhall, Richie
English male boxers
Olympic boxers of Great Britain
World boxing champions
Commonwealth Games gold medallists for England
Olympic bronze medallists for Great Britain
Boxers at the 1988 Summer Olympics
Boxers at the 1990 Commonwealth Games
People from Telford
1968 births
Living people
Olympic medalists in boxing
Medalists at the 1988 Summer Olympics
Commonwealth Games medallists in boxing
World super-middleweight boxing champions
World Boxing Council champions
Commonwealth Boxing Council champions
European Boxing Union champions
Light-middleweight boxers