Australia, New Zealand Encyclopedia 3. (töredék) [antikvár]

BOXINGBoxing is a popular sport in Australia and New Zealand, but it has not always been conducted under strict safety regulations.Boxing often took place under gruelling 'bare-knuckle' conditions, with no time limit on the fight. The lack of rules resulted in some extraordinary fights. The longest bare-knuckle contest ever recorded, held in Victoria in 1855, lasted 6 hours and 15 minutes.The earliest-known prize fight in Australia took place in Hyde Park, Sydney, in 1814, and various regions soon had their own boxing heroes. Rough-and-tumble fights were staged in the mining towns of Coolgardie, Kalgoorlie and Ballarat.Early fights were illegal and many were stopped by the police. In 1862, the first NZ prize fight was interrupted by the police, who occupied the ring with drawn revolvers. The crowd swarmed into the ring, displaced the policemen, and the fight went on.One of the most famous of the bare-knuckle fighters was Laurence 'Larry' Foley, who started a boxing academy after his retirement.Top: Lionel Rose, Aboriginal former world champion, demonstrates boxing technique to young admirers. Above: NZ amateur welterweight, Ronnie Jackson, throws a left counter to the body of an opponent from Fiji.Foley's most famous pupil was the English-born New Zealander Bob Fitzsimmons, a world champion in three classes.Another NZ champion of that time was 'Torpedo Billy' Murphy, who won the world featherweight title in San Francisco in 1890.169