Wilbert McClure (October 29, 1938 – August 6, 2020) was an American boxer. 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, autodidacticism, self-taught, user-generated, do it yourself, DI ...

he won gold medals 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 an ...

division at the

1959 Pan American Games The 1959 Pan American Games were held in Chicago, Illinois, United States between August 28 and September 7, 1959. Host city selection One city initially submitted a bid to host the 1959 Pan American Games that was recognized by the Pan Ame ...

and the 1960 Olympics. As a

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skil ...

he competed from 1961 to 1970.

Personal

McClure earned degrees in literature and philosophy in 1961 from the

University of Toledo The University of Toledo (UToledo or UT) is a public research university in Toledo, Ohio. It is the northernmost campus of the University System of Ohio. The university also operates a Health Science campus, which includes the University of T ...

and a doctorate in psychology from

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...

in Detroit in 1973. He later became a Massachusetts state boxing commissioner. He was honored in August 2012 for his life's work by the Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race and Justice at Harvard Law School. McClure was found guilty in '' Wilson v. McClure et al'', the first legal case in the US to reach a federal court jury to challenge the concept of same-race discrimination in September 2000. The case was brought by race-black licensed boxing promoter Zeke Wilson against a state sports commission headed by the race-black chairman for damage reparations and punitive redress after his right to conduct professional boxing events was violated. In this case, race-white boxing commissioner William Pender performed direct discriminatory acts, while the race-black commission chairman Wilbert McClure failed to provide the promoter sufficient protection under his authority and cooperated in the unjust cancellation of a series of boxing events, causing financial harm to the promoter. A unanimous jury verdict found that the race-black Chairman was guilty of racial discrimination along with race-white Commissioner William Pender and both defendants were assessed punitive damages in addition to the compensatory damages awarded by the jury.29 M.L.W. 274. The precedent-setting case is the subject of the non-fiction book, '' The Eighth Round''. The book is being adapted into a motion picture by the same title.

Amateur career

McClure defeated Carmelo Bossi to win the light middleweight gold medal for the United States at the

1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics ( it, Giochi Olimpici estivi del 1960), officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad ( it, Giochi della XVII Olimpiade) and commonly known as Rome 1960 ( it, Roma 1960), were an international multi-sport event held ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, Italy.

Amateur highlights

* 1960 U.S. Olympic trials 156-lb champion * 1960 National AAU 156-lb champion * 1959 Named Outstanding Amateur Boxer in the U.S. * 1959 Pan American Games gold medalist * 1959 National AAU champion * 1959 160 lb Intercity Golden Gloves champion * 1958 & 1959 160 lb Chicago Golden Gloves champion * 1958 International Diamond Belt champion, Mexico City

Pro career

Nicknamed "Skeeter", McClure turned pro in 1961 and had limited success. He never fought for a major title, and lost to notable pros

Luis Manuel Rodríguez Luis Manuel Rodríguez (17 June 1937 – 8 July 1996) was a Cuban professional boxer. Known as "El Feo", he began his career in pre- Castro Havana. In Cuba, he twice defeated the ill-fated future welterweight champion Benny Paret. He held the W ...

Rubin Carter Rubin "Hurricane" Carter (May 6, 1937 – April 20, 2014) was an American-Canadian middleweight boxer, wrongfully convicted and imprisoned for murder, until released following a petition of habeas corpus after almost 20 years in prison. In ...

(and also drew once with Carter), and

Johnny Pritchett John G Pritchett (born 15 February 1943) is an English amateur welterweight and professional light middle/ middle/light heavyweight boxer of the 1960s and '70s, and boxing manager of the 1970s and '80s. He fought as Johnny Pritchett. Boxing ...

before retiring in 1970.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mcclure, Wilbert 2020 deaths 1938 births African-American boxers Light-middleweight boxers Boxers at the 1960 Summer Olympics Olympic boxers for the United States Medalists at the 1960 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for the United States in boxing Boxers at the 1959 Pan American Games Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States in boxing University of Toledo alumni Wayne State University alumni Boxers from Ohio Sportspeople from Toledo, Ohio American male boxers Medalists at the 1959 Pan American Games 20th-century African-American sportspeople 21st-century African-American people