Benjamin Whittaker
Benjamin G. Whittaker (born 6 June 1997)[2] is an English professional boxer. As an amateur he won a silver medal at the 2020 Summer Olympics.
Benjamin Whittaker | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight(s) | Light-heavyweight | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Darlaston, England | 6 June 1997|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boxing record[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total fights | 4 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wins | 4 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wins by KO | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Amateur career
In 2018, he was picked to represent England in the 2018 Commonwealth Games, which took place in Australia's Gold Coast.[3]
In 2019, he was selected to compete at the World Championships in Yekaterinburg, Russia,[4] where he won the bronze medal after losing by unanimous decision to Dilshodbek Ruzmetov in the semi-finals.[5]
In 2021, at the men's light-heavyweight category at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Whittaker won the silver medal against Arlen Lopez, who won gold.
Whittaker tweeted, "You don't win silver, you lose gold. I'm very disappointed - I feel like a failure."
Distraught from falling short of gold, he refused to wear the medal at the ceremony; however, he vowed he would return to win gold, saying: "I'll come back, trust me."
Whittaker's passionate reaction drew mixed reactions, but most people were empathetic of Whittaker's reaction. English media personality Piers Morgan tweeted: "Love this - finally, an athlete at these Olympics prepared to tell the truth about competing in elite sport. Good for you @BenGWhittaker".[6]
Professional career
In 2022 he signed a professional deal with Boxxer, training with SugarHill Steward.[7][8]
Professional boxing record
4 fights | 4 wins | 0 losses |
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By knockout | 3 | 0 |
By decision | 1 | 0 |
No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
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4 | Win | 4–0 | Vladimir Belujsky | TKO | 8 (8) 1:49 | 1 July 2023 | Manchester Arena, Manchester, England | |
3 | Win | 3–0 | Jordan Grant | TKO | 3 (6) 0:13 | 6 May 2023 | Resorts World Arena, Birmingham, England | |
2 | Win | 2–0 | Petar Nosic | UD | 6 | 20 Aug 2022 | Jeddah Superdome, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia | |
1 | Win | 1–0 | Greg O'Neil | KO | 2 (6) 0:21 | 30 Jul 2022 | Bournemouth International Centre, Bournemouth, England |
Notes
- Also designated as the 2019 men's European Championships
References
- "Boxing record for Benjamin Whittaker". BoxRec.
- "Benjamin Whittaker - England Boxing Team". Commonwealth Games England. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
- "Commonwealth Games 2018: McCormack twins named in England boxing squad". BBC Sport. BBC. 6 February 2018. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
- "Thirteen boxers from GB Boxing squad selected to compete at 2019 World Championships in Russia". boxing247.com. East Side Boxing. 15 August 2019. Archived from the original on 15 August 2019. Retrieved 9 October 2019.
- "Thirteen boxers from GB Boxing squad selected to compete at 2019 World Championships in Russia". GB Boxing. Retrieved 9 October 2019.
- Morgan, Piers [@piersmorgan] (4 August 2021). "'You don't win silver, you lose gold. I'm very disappointed - I feel like a failure. You're in this game to win gold.' Love this - finally, an athlete at these Olympics prepared to tell the truth about competing in elite sport. Good for you @BenGWhittaker. t.co/32RKabmDx5" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 5 August 2021. Retrieved 10 August 2021 – via Twitter.
- "Ben Whittaker: Olympic silver medallist signs long-term promotional agreement with BOXXER". Sky Sports. Retrieved 11 May 2022.
- "GB Olympic medallist Whittaker to turn pro". BBC Sport. Retrieved 11 May 2022.