Damien Hooper facts for kids

Damien Hooper (born 5 February 1992) is an Australian professional boxer. He comes from an Indigenous Australian background. As a young boxer, he was chosen to represent Australia at the 2012 Summer Olympics. He competed in the light-heavyweight division.

Early Life and Boxing Start

Damien Hooper grew up in Dalby, Australia. His grandmother, Lillian Weribone, raised him. He started boxing when he was eleven years old. His older brother, Troy Hooper, also boxed.

Damien faced some challenges when he was younger. A local policeman, Chris Seng, was a former professional boxer. He ran a youth club and suggested Damien try boxing. This helped Damien find a positive path.

Amateur Boxing Career

Damien had a very successful amateur boxing career.

First Indigenous Junior World Champion

In 2010, Damien made history. He became the first Indigenous Australian to win a junior world title. He won the 75 kg category at the Youth Olympics in Singapore. In the same year, he won a silver medal. This was at the Youth World Championships in Baku, Azerbaijan. He was also chosen for the Australian team. This team went to the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi. Damien was also a scholarship holder. This meant he received support from the Australian Institute of Sport for boxing.

Qualifying for the Olympics

The next year, Damien moved up a weight class. He started competing against older, more experienced boxers. He went back to Baku for the 2011 World Amateur Boxing Championships. He reached the quarter-finals there. He narrowly lost to Julio César La Cruz by one point. This strong performance earned him a spot. He qualified directly for the London Olympics.

2012 London Summer Olympics

At the 2012 London Summer Olympics, Damien competed in the 81 kg division. He won his first fight against Marcus Browne. Then, he lost on points to Egor Mekhontsev from Russia. Mekhontsev went on to win the gold medal. This was Damien's last amateur fight. He had competed in 180 amateur matches.

Professional Boxing Career

Damien Hooper turned professional in 2013.

Early Professional Fights

Before his first professional fight, Damien signed with Ricky Hatton's company. This was called Hatton Promotions. By 2014, Damien had a great record. He had won 9 fights and knocked out 8 opponents. However, his career then slowed down. He lost a fight to Rob Powdrill in November 2014. In 2015, he no longer had his deal with Ricky Hatton's company. He is now with No Limit Boxing. He is currently ranked as the number 1 Australian light heavyweight. He is also ranked 9th in the WBO Light-Heavyweight rankings.

Winning International Titles

In 2017, Damien Hooper (with a record of 12 wins and 1 loss) fought Umar Salamov. Salamov was an undefeated Russian boxer. This big fight was before the main match between Manny Pacquiao and Jeff Horn. Damien won the fight by a unanimous decision. The judges scored it 96–94 in his favor. With this win, Damien earned two important titles. He won the WBO International light-heavyweight title. He also won the vacant IBF International light-heavyweight title. This improved his professional record to 13 wins and 1 loss.

Damien continued to defend his WBO International light-heavyweight title. In May 2018, he fought Renold Quinlan. Damien won this fight by TKO (Technical Knockout) in the 9th round.

Personal Life and Identity

Damien Hooper's older brother, Troy, passed away in 2012. This happened in a workplace accident. It was two months after Damien competed at the London Olympics. Damien is very proud of his heritage. His Indigenous family background is linked to the Kamilaroi people.

Olympic Flag Controversy

During the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Damien caused a stir. On 30 July, he walked into the boxing ring for his Olympic fight. He was wearing a T-shirt with the Australian Aboriginal flag on it. The Australian Olympic Committee asked him to apologize publicly. They said wearing the shirt broke the Olympic rules.

Damien explained his actions. He said, "I'm not saying I don't care [if there are consequences]. I'm just saying that I'm very proud of what I did." He added, "I'm Aboriginal, representing my culture, not only my country but all my people as well. That's what I wanted to do and I'm happy I did it." Even though the Australian Olympic Committee was critical, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided not to take any action against him.