László Papp facts for kids
Quick facts for kids László Papp |
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Papp, 13 December 1955
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| Real name | László Papp | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nickname(s) | Laci Papp | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rated at | Middleweight Light Middleweight |
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| Height | 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality | Hungarian | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 25 March 1926 Budapest, Hungary |
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| Died | 16 October 2003 (aged 77) Budapest, Hungary |
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| Stance | Southpaw | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Boxing record | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total fights | 29 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wins | 27 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wins by KO | 15 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Losses | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Draws | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No contests | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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László Papp (born March 25, 1926 – died October 16, 2003) was a famous Hungarian boxer. He was known for being a southpaw, which means he boxed with his left hand and foot forward.
László Papp made history by winning three gold medals in a row at the Olympic Games. He won gold at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki, and the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. He was the very first boxer to achieve this amazing feat!
In his Olympic fights, he won 12 out of 13 matches without losing a single round. He only lost one round in his final Olympic match against American boxer José Torres. After Papp, it took 20 years for another boxer, Teófilo Stevenson, to win three Olympic golds. Later, Félix Savón also achieved this.
Contents
Amateur Career: A Champion in the Making
László Papp had an incredible amateur boxing career. He won three Olympic gold medals:
- In 1948, he won as a middleweight in London.
- In 1952, he won as a light middleweight in Helsinki.
- In 1956, he won again as a light middleweight in Melbourne.
He was also a European amateur champion. He won the middleweight title in Oslo in 1949. Then, he won the light middleweight title in Milan in 1951. Papp was known for his powerful punches. As an amateur, he knocked out his opponents in the first round 55 times! His overall amateur record was 301 wins, 12 losses, and 6 draws.
Olympic Victories
Here are the boxers László Papp defeated on his way to his Olympic gold medals:
1948 London Olympics
- Beat Valfrid Resko (Finland) by knockout in Round 2.
- Beat Jean Welter (Luxembourg) by knockout in Round 1.
- Beat Auguste Cavignac (Belgium) by knockout in Round 1.
- Beat Ivano Fontana (Italy) with a 3-0 score.
- Beat John Wright (England) with a 3-0 score.
1952 Helsinki Olympics
- Beat Spider Webb (United States) by knockout in Round 2.
- Beat Charlie Chase (Canada) by knockout in Round 2.
- Beat Petar Stankoff Spassoff (Bulgaria) with a 3-0 score.
- Beat Eladio Oscar Herrera (Argentina) with a 3-0 score.
- Beat Theunis Jacobus van Schalkwyk (South Africa) with a 3-0 score.
1956 Melbourne Olympics
- Beat Alberto Saenz (Argentina) by knockout in Round 3.
- Beat Zbigniew Pietrzykowski (Poland) with a 3-0 score.
- Beat José Torres (USA) with a 2-1 score.
Professional Career: An Undefeated Legend
After his amazing amateur career, Papp decided to become a professional boxer in 1957. This was a big challenge because Hungary was a Communist country at that time. Professional boxing was not allowed there.
Because of this rule, Papp had to travel to Vienna, Austria, for all his training and fights. Even with this difficulty, he became very successful. He defeated many top boxers in the middleweight division. Some of his notable wins were against Tiger Jones, French champion Hippolyte Annex, and Chris Christensen. He also beat Randy Sandy from the United States.
In 1964, László Papp was ready to fight for the world championship title. However, the Hungarian government stopped him. They refused to give him a visa to leave the country. This was because they did not approve of professional boxing. This decision sadly ended his professional career.
László Papp is one of the very few boxers in history who retired without ever losing a professional fight. His record was 27 wins, 2 draws, and no losses. He won 15 of his fights by knockout.
Death
László Papp passed away in his hometown of Budapest in 2003.
Honors and Legacy
László Papp received many honors for his incredible boxing career:
- In 2001, he was added to the International Boxing Hall of Fame. This is a special place for the greatest boxers of all time.
- In 1989, the president of the World Boxing Council, José Sulaimán, gave Papp an award. He called him the 'Best amateur and professional boxer of all time'. Papp was also made an honorary champion of the World Boxing Council.
Today, a large building in Budapest is named in his honor: the Papp László Sportaréna. It is used for concerts and is the home ice for the Hungarian national hockey team.
See also
In Spanish: László Papp para niños
