On Sunday, May 8, 2011, Australian retired
world title holder Lionel Rose, born June 21, 1948, died in Melbourne,
Australia. Rose had been ill for several months, and had had a stroke, leaving
him partially paralyzed in 2007.
Rose made history for his country, when at the tender age of 19 years old, won a
world bantamweight title, after defeating Japan's Masahiko Harada, in Tokyo in
1968.
Lionel Rose, the first Australian Aborigine to win a world boxing title, died
near Melbourne after being ill for several months. He had a stroke
in 2007 that left him partially paralyzed.
In the Los Angeles Times, they wrote this week, "In December of that year [1968]
at the Forum in Inglewood, Rose was declared the victor in a split 15-round
decision over Mexico's Jesus Castillo. An unruly mob among the more than 15,000
spectators rioted, throwing bottles, chairs and other debris into the ring and
setting fires inside and outside the arena." [For Rose's complete biography, go
to Wiki - Link]
According to Wiki, after Rose had retired from boxing he tried his hand at
singing in Australia, and had a couple of song hits in 1970. Rose also became a
successful businessman and was able to manage his money and make good financial
decisions, and he enjoyed the monetary benefits his career brought him. Rose was
showcased in 2002 in the The Ring section 'Where are they now?'
