Errol Christie facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Errol Christie
Christie (left) with Lloyd Honeyghan
Statistics
Nickname(s)	Thames Barrier Warrior
Rated at	Middleweight Super-middleweight
Height	5 ft 10 in
Nationality	English
Born	(1963-06-29)29 June 1963 Leicester, England
Died	11 June 2017(2017-06-11) (aged 53) London, England
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	41
Wins	32
Wins by KO	26
Losses	8
Draws	1
Medal record Men's amateur boxing Representing  England English National Championships Gold 1981 London Light-middleweight European Junior Championships Gold 1982 Schwerin Middleweight

Errol Christie (born June 29, 1963 – died June 11, 2017) was a famous English boxer and boxing coach. He was a very talented amateur boxer. Errol was even the captain of England's amateur boxing team from 1980 to 1983. He also won the European amateur championship in 1983.

After becoming a professional boxer, he was often seen on a TV show called ITV Fight Night in the 1980s. When he stopped boxing professionally, he started training people in a type of boxing called white-collar boxing.

Errol Christie's Boxing Journey

Early Life and Amateur Success

Errol Christie was born in Leicester, England. He grew up in Radford, Coventry, with his six brothers. When he was only eight years old, he started learning to box. He trained at the Standard-Triumph gym in Coventry. His coach was Tom McGarry.

In his early boxing days, Errol was incredibly good. He won 78 out of 80 fights. Many of his wins came from knocking out his opponents quickly. He won many important titles as a young boxer. He was the Warwickshire champion in 1976. He became the schoolboy champion in 1977. In 1979, he won the NABC championship. Then, in 1981, he became the senior ABA champion. He beat Cameron Lithgow in the final match.

Because of his amazing skills, Errol was chosen to be the captain of England's boxing team. He held this important role from 1980 to 1983. To help his boxing career grow even more, he moved to London in 1981.

In 1982, Errol achieved a big international win. He became the European amateur under-19 champion. He won against Assylbek Kilimov in the semi-finals. Then he defeated Moe Gruciano in the finals. This championship took place in Schwerin, which was in East Germany at the time. Errol Christie was so successful that he was listed in The Guinness Book of Records. He was recognized as the only British boxer to win all 10 amateur titles.

Professional Boxing Career

Errol Christie became a professional boxer in 1982. He started working with a new manager named Burt McCarthy. Errol had a fantastic start to his professional career. He won his first 13 fights. In 12 of those fights, he won by knockout. One notable victory was against French champion Joel Bonnetaz in February 1984.

He even got to wear the special golden shorts from the Kronk Gym. This happened after he impressed the gym's promoter, Emanuel Steward, during a sparring session. However, in September 1984, Jose Seys unexpectedly knocked him out. This loss made Errol lose some of his confidence.

After that, Errol won seven more fights. He beat former Mexican champion Gonzalo Montes. Then, in November 1985, he had a big fight against Mark Kaylor. This fight was to decide who would challenge for the British middleweight title. It took place at Wembley Arena. Errol was knocked out in the eighth round.

He bounced back and won his next four fights. He defeated Nigerian champion Hunter Clay. He also beat Sean Mannion, who had challenged for a world title before. But in December 1986, he faced another setback. Charles Boston stopped him in their fight.

Between June 1987 and October 1990, Errol won eight out of thirteen fights. In November 1990, he fought Michael Watson at the National Exhibition Centre. Watson stopped him in the third round. Errol then took a break from boxing for over two years. He returned in March 1993 to fight Trevor Ambrose. He lost that fight in the second round. This turned out to be his final professional fight.

Christie with veteran boxer Henry Cooper (sitting on Christie's left-hand side).

Life After Boxing

New Paths and Coaching

Towards the end of his boxing career, Errol Christie tried stand-up comedy. After he officially retired from boxing in 1993, he worked as a market trader for six years.

In 1999, Errol started teaching white-collar boxing. This is a type of boxing for people who usually work in offices, not professional boxers. He first taught at the Real Fight Club. From 2003, he taught at Gymbox in Holborn, London.

Errol coached many well-known people. His students included TV presenter Dermot O'Leary, former football player Gianluca Vialli, musician Seal, and journalist Tony McMahon. He also worked with children in schools and community centers, sharing his boxing knowledge.

In 2010, Errol Christie became a fight consultant for a play. The play was called Sucker Punch. It was written by Roy Williams and directed by Sacha Wares. The play was performed at the Royal Court Theatre in Chelsea, London. In March 2010, Errol published his life story. The book was called No Place To Hide. He wrote it with Tony McMahon. The book talked about racism in boxing and in Britain during the 1970s and 1980s. It was even considered for a sports writing award in 2010.

Family and Later Life

Errol Christie was the uncle of Cyrus Christie. Cyrus is a professional football player. He plays for Hull City A.F.C. and the Irish national team.

Illness and Passing

In March 2015, Errol Christie was diagnosed with small-cell lung cancer. He bravely fought the illness. Sadly, he passed away on June 11, 2017. He was 53 years old. He died at St. Christopher's Hospice in London due to complications from the disease.