Teófilo Stevenson facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Teófilo Stevenson
Stevenson in 1985
Statistics
Real name	Teófilo Stevenson Lawrence
Rated at	Heavyweight
Height	6 ft 5 in (196 cm)
Born	(1952-03-29)29 March 1952 Puerto Padre, Las Tunas Province, Cuba
Died	11 June 2012(2012-06-11) (aged 60) Havana, Cuba
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	332
Wins	302
Losses	22
Draws	8
Medal record Men's boxing Representing  Cuba Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 3 0 0 World Championships 3 0 0 Central American Championships 6 0 0 North American Championships 0 0 1 Pan American Games 2 0 1 Central American and Caribbean Games 2 0 0 Friendship Games 1 0 0 Total 17 0 2 Olympic Games Gold 1972 Munich Heavyweight Gold 1976 Montreal Heavyweight Gold 1980 Moscow Heavyweight Friendship Games Gold 1984 Havana Super Heavyweight Pan American Games Bronze 1971 Cali Heavyweight Gold 1975 Mexico City Heavyweight Gold 1979 San Juan Heavyweight Central American and Caribbean Games Gold 1974 Santo Domingo Heavyweight Gold 1982 Havana Super Heavyweight World Championships Gold 1974 Havana Heavyweight Gold 1978 Belgrade Heavyweight Gold 1986 Reno Super Heavyweight Central America and the Caribbean Championships Gold 1970 Havana Heavyweight Gold 1971 San Juan Heavyweight Gold 1972 San José Heavyweight Gold 1973 Mexico City Heavyweight Gold 1974 Caracas Heavyweight Gold 1977 Panama City Heavyweight North American Championships Bronze 1983 Houston Super Heavyweight

Teófilo Stevenson Lawrence (born March 29, 1952 – died June 11, 2012) was a famous Cuban amateur boxer. He competed from 1966 to 1986. Stevenson won the Val Barker Trophy in 1972, which is given to the most outstanding boxer at the Olympic Games. He also received the Olympic Order in 1987. Stevenson is one of only three boxers in history to win three Olympic gold medals. The other two are László Papp from Hungary and Félix Savón, also from Cuba.

Teófilo Stevenson's Early Life

Stevenson was born in Puerto Padre, Cuba. His father, Teófilo Stevenson Patterson, came from the island of Saint Vincent. His mother, Dolores Lawrence, was Cuban, but her parents were from the English-speaking island of Saint Kitts.

His father arrived in Cuba in 1923. He worked many different jobs. Later, he settled in Camagüey with Dolores. There, he taught English to earn more money. Because of his large size, Teófilo senior was encouraged to try boxing. He fought seven times but stopped because he did not like how young fighters were paid.

Young Teófilo was a smart kid. At nine years old, he started sparring at the outdoor gym his father used to visit. A former boxing champion, John Herrera, trained him. Teófilo junior began fighting more experienced boxers. Herrera said he "had what it took." Stevenson kept his boxing a secret from his mother at first. When his father finally told her, she was very upset. But she agreed, as long as his father went with him to training.

Stevenson's Boxing Career

Starting His Boxing Journey

Teófilo Stevenson kept getting better in the mid-1960s. He won a junior title and trained more in Havana. His wins caught the eye of Andrei Chervonenko. He was a main coach in Cuba's new state sports system.

In Cuba, professional sports had been banned since 1962. All boxing was now guided by the government's National Boxing Commission. Chervonenko, a former boxer from the Soviet Union, helped create Cuba's Escuela de Boxeo (Boxing school). He strongly supported Stevenson's progress.

Stevenson's adult boxing career started at age seventeen. He lost his first national championship fight to Gabriel Garcia. But he soon won against Nancio Carrillo and Juan Perez. These were two of Cuba's best boxers in his weight class. This earned him a spot on the national team for the 1970 Central American and Caribbean Boxing Championships. He lost in the final but was still seen as Cuba's top heavyweight.

Back in the gym, Chervonenko and coach Alcides Sagarra worked on Stevenson's jab. This became his best move. It helped him easily beat Bernd Anders of East Germany. This win made the amateur boxing world notice Stevenson as a serious heavyweight.

Winning Gold at the Munich Olympics 1972

Stevenson, now twenty, joined the Cuban boxing team for the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich. His first fight was against Polish boxer Ludwik Denderys. Stevenson knocked him down quickly. The fight stopped because of a cut near the Pole's eye.

In the quarter-finals, Stevenson faced American boxer Duane Bobick. Bobick had won a gold medal in 1971 and had beaten Stevenson before. The first round was close. Stevenson lost the second. But in the third round, Stevenson fought fiercely. He knocked Bobick down three times, and the fight was stopped. This victory was watched all over Cuba. Many still remember it as Stevenson's best performance.

Stevenson easily beat German boxer Peter Hussing in the semifinal. He won by TKO (Technical Knockout) in the second round. He received his gold medal when Romanian boxer Ion Alexe could not fight in the final due to an injury. The Cuban boxing team won three gold medals that year. These were their first Olympic boxing gold medals ever. They also won one silver and one bronze. The Munich Games showed that Cuba was a strong force in amateur boxing. This dominance lasted for decades. Stevenson also became known as the world's best amateur heavyweight boxer.

Prime Years and More Gold Medals

Stevenson continued his winning streak. He won at the first 1974 World Amateur Boxing Championships in Havana. Then, at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, he won gold again. By this time, he was a national hero in Cuba.

American boxing promoters offered him US$5 million to become a professional boxer. They wanted him to challenge the world heavyweight champion, Muhammad Ali. If he had accepted, he would have been only the second boxer to go straight from the Olympics to a professional fight for a world title. But Stevenson refused. He famously asked, "What is one million dollars compared to the love of eight million Cubans?"

Stevenson went to the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. He became the second boxer ever, after Papp, to win three Olympic boxing gold medals.

In 1982, Stevenson competed at the 1982 World Amateur Boxing Championships in Munich. He lost to Francesco Damiani from Italy. This loss ended his eleven-year winning streak. It was the only time he did not win gold at the World Championships when he entered.

Stevenson might have won a fourth gold medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics. However, the Soviet Union boycotted the games, which were held in Los Angeles. This was in response to the American boycott of the 1980 Moscow Olympics. Cuba followed the Soviet Union's lead, so Stevenson did not compete. Instead, he won the super heavyweight gold at the 1984 Friendship Games. He beat Ulli Kaden of East Germany and Valeriy Abadzhyan of the Soviet Union.

At the 1986 World Amateur Boxing Championships, he won another super heavyweight gold. He defeated Alex Garcia from the United States in the final. Stevenson retired from boxing shortly after the 1988 Summer Olympics, which Cuba also boycotted.

Rivalry with Igor Vysotsky

Teófilo Stevenson had two notable fights with Soviet boxer Igor Vysotsky. Vysotsky defeated Stevenson twice.

Vysotsky was the only boxer among hundreds of Stevenson's opponents to ever stop him, especially by knockout. He also defeated him twice when Stevenson was at his peak. Vysotsky's first win over Stevenson happened in Cuba, at the Córdova Cardín tournament.

Stevenson's second loss to Vysotsky happened six weeks before his knockout winning streak at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. After losing to Vysotsky for the second time, Stevenson said, "Nobody is invincible."

Olympic Boycotts and Professional Offers

Stevenson could have won more gold medals for his country. However, the Cuban government decided not to send its athletes to the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. This was for political reasons. Cuba also refused to attend the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul. This was because North Korea was not allowed to co-host the event.

In the 1970s, Stevenson was the top amateur heavyweight. At the same time, Muhammad Ali was the world's professional heavyweight champion. American media often called Stevenson Ali's "Communist twin." People wondered if they would ever fight if Stevenson became a professional. Stevenson was one of the few amateur boxers ever offered a chance to fight for a world heavyweight title in his first professional match.

Ali later spent a week in Cuba with Stevenson. But their fight never happened. Stevenson suggested a short, three- or four-round fight. Ali wanted a standard 15-round championship match.

Stevenson turned down many offers to become a professional boxer. These offers came from famous U.S. boxing promoters like Don King and Bob Arum. Arum almost arranged a series of exhibition fights between Ali and Stevenson. The Cubans accepted his $1 million offer for five three-round fights. However, the United States Department of the Treasury did not allow it. They said it went against the U.S. embargo against Cuba.

Stevenson never became a professional boxer. He stayed true to Cuba's ideals. He never accepted money for himself, no matter how large the offer. After winning gold at the 1972 Munich Olympics, a promoter offered him $1 million to turn pro. Stevenson famously said, "I will not trade the Cuban people for all the dollars in the world." Don King said, "Stevenson would have been amazing as a pro. He could have been like Muhammad Ali or Joe Frazier. But we'll never know."

Life After Boxing

Stevenson ended his boxing career in 1988. He then became a boxing trainer and worked in sports management. He worked at the National Institute for Sports, Physical Education, and Recreation (INDER). He also served as the vice president of the Cuban Boxing Federation.

In 1999, Stevenson was involved in an incident at Miami International Airport. He was arrested after an argument with an airline employee. Stevenson did not attend the court hearings later. He had returned to Havana after being released on bail. The Cuban newspaper Trabajadores said that Cuban exiles in Miami had caused the incident. They believed it was meant to harm Stevenson's reputation.

Stevenson's Passing

Teófilo Stevenson died on June 11, 2012, in Havana. He was 60 years old. Cuban state media reported that he died of a heart attack. They said "the Cuban sporting family was moved today by the passing of one of the greatest of all time." He was survived by his two children.

A documentary called Split Decision by Brin-Jonathan Butler includes the last known interview with Stevenson.

Awards and Honors

• Stevenson received the Val Barker Trophy in 1972. This award is given to the most outstanding boxer at the Olympic Games.
• In 1972, Stevenson was named a Merited Master of Sport of the USSR. He was one of the few foreign athletes to receive this honor.

Images for kids

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  Stevenson in 1985

See Also

In Spanish: Teófilo Stevenson para niños