Look up harrison in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Harrison may refer to:

People[link]

• See Harrison (name)

Places[link]

In Australia:

• Harrison, Australian Capital Territory, planned suburb in the Canberra district of Gungahlin

In Canada:

• Inukjuak, Quebec, or "Port Harrison", Nunavik region of northern Quebec, Canada
• Harrison Lake, a lake in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada
  • Harrison Hot Springs, resort village in British Columbia, Canada, located on Harrison Lake
  • Harrison River, a tributary of the Fraser River and which is the outlet of Harrison Lake
  • Harrison Bay, a sidewater of the river
  • Harrison Mills, British Columbia, a locality and former milltown at the mouth of the Harrison River
  • Harrison Knob, a prominent hill and important archaeological site adjacent to the mouth of the Harrison River
• Harrison Island, Hudson Bay, Nunavut
• Harrison Islands, Gulf of Boothia, Nunavut
• Harrison Settlement, Nova Scotia

In the United States:

• Harrison, Arkansas
• Harrison, Georgia
• Harrison, Idaho
• Harrison, Illinois (disambiguation)
• Harrison, Maine
• Harrison, Michigan
• Harrison, Minneapolis, Minnesota
• Harrison, Montana
• Harrison, Nebraska
• Harrison, New Jersey
• Harrison, New York
• Harrison, Ohio
• Harrison, Roanoke, Virginia
• Harrison, South Dakota
• Harrison, Tennessee
• Harrison, Wisconsin (disambiguation)

See also[link]

• Harrison Apartment Building, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C.
• Harrison College (Indiana) (formerly Indiana Business College)
• Harrison Narcotics Tax Act
• George Harrison (album)
• Harrison & Harrison organ builders
• Harrison and Sons postage stamp printers
• Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine
• Harrison Bergeron, short story by Kurt Vonnegut

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Audley Harrison
Statistics
Real name	Audley Harrison
Nickname(s)	A-Force
Rated at	Heavyweight
Height	6 ft 5 1⁄2 in (1.97 m)
Reach	86 in (218 cm)
Nationality	British
Born	(1971-10-26) 26 October 1971 (age 40) London
Stance	Southpaw
Boxing record
Total fights	33
Wins	28
Wins by KO	21
Losses	5
Draws	0
No contests	0

Audley Harrison (born 26 October 1971) is a British professional boxer from Harlesden, England who fights in the heavyweight division. At the 2000 Olympics in Sydney he became the first British fighter to win an Olympic gold medal in the superheavyweight division. He stands 6 ft 5 ¹⁄₂ in (1.97 m) and usually weighs around 255 lb (116 kg).

Harrison turned professional 2001 after signing a contract with BBC Sport. Harrison had 17 fights on the network before BBC Sport pulled all boxing from their programming.

In October 2009, he won the Prizefighter tournament. He became European heavyweight champion after knocking out Michael Sprott in April 2010.^[1][2][3]

Boxing career[link]

Amateur career[link]

Boxing out of Repton Amateur Boxing Club in Bethnal Green, London, Harrison became British super heavyweight champion in 1997, defeating Nick Kendall in the final. He retained the title in 1998, defeating Dean Redmond,^[4] and won Gold at the 1998 Commonwealth Games beating Michael Macquae of Mauritius in the final. In 2000 he won Gold at the Sydney Olympics by defeating Mukhtarkhan Dildabekov of Kazakhstan on points.

Turning professional[link]

After his medal win, Harrison was awarded an MBE. In 2001, Harrison released his autobiography Realising the Dream and set up his own company, A Force Promotions, to manage his career and concluded several high profile sponsorships deals and became the first boxer in Britain to sign a direct broadcast deal.^{[citation needed]}

He signed a £1 million deal with the BBC to show his first ten professional fights.^[5]

His debut was against US club fighter Michael Middleton, whom Harrison knocked out in the first round in Wembley Arena with 6 million viewers watching at home.^[6] He was then out of action for several months with a injury, but by the end of the year outpointed Briton Derek McCafferty over six rounds.^[7]

Harrison continued to win and made his United States debut in November 2002, knocking out Shawn Robinson in the 1st round. In February 2003 he beat US fighter Rob Calloway in four rounds,^[8] and outpointed Ratko Draskovic over eight rounds.^[9] Harrison then knocked out Matt Ellis in two rounds. Harrison then tried to arrange a fight with 41 year old ex-World champion Frank Bruno, who had been retired for seven years. A dispute at York Hall, Bethnal Green with the erratic Hide after the Ellis fight resulted in a riot.^[10] The proposed Frank Bruno fight collapsed shortly afterwards, when Bruno was sectioned under the Mental Health Act.^{[citation needed]} Harrison and Hide were both penalised by the British Boxing Board of Control for the riot.

Medal record
Men's Boxing
Olympic Games
Competitor for  United Kingdom
Gold	2000 Sydney	Super Heavyweight
Commonwealth Games
Competitor for  England
Gold	1998 Kuala Lumpur	Super Heavyweight

America bound[link]

Following the Ellis riot, Harrison relocated to the USA where he was unbeaten in 11 fights, with 8 knockouts. In the 2003 November issue of the Ring Magazine, Harrison was tipped to emulate Lennox Lewis and become a dominant world champion.

He had three more fights in 2003, against tough Lisandro Diaz (KO4),^[11] Quinn Navarre (KO3),^[12] and Brian Nix (KO3),^[13] in America. Harrison was sparring regularly with experienced world class Heavyweights like Vaughn Bean.

Harrison returned to the UK in 2004, but instead of fighting new British champion Michael Sprott for the British title, he fought unbeaten Dutch fighter Richel Hersisia for the WBF World belt. He knocked out Hersisia in 4 rounds.^[14] He defended the title twice: a 12 round points win over late-sub Julius Francis,^[15] and a 9th round TKO of unbeaten Tomasz Bonin.^[16] After suffering a serious ligament tear in his left hand requiring hand surgery in New York, Harrison did not fight for almost a year.

BBC deal ends[link]

When the BBC decided to take all boxing off their schedule permanently,^[17] Harrison's contract was not renewed. Harrison insisted the decision had nothing to do with his boxing ability and more to do with race.^[18] A-Force Promotions was re launched in the USA and Harrison formed a partnership with Al Haymon.

America adventure continues[link]

Harrison returned to the ring in June 2005. He knocked out Robert Davis (KO7)^[19] and Robert Wiggins (KO4).^[20] On The Best Damn Sports Show Period he said he was now ready to step up and face world class opponents and get a title shot.

Loss of form[link]

Harrison returned to the UK in December to face long-time bitter rival Danny Williams in London for the Commonwealth title. Harrison stepped in after Matt Skelton had pulled out and took the bout on five weeks notice. Harrison lost a close, split decision.^[21]

In April 2006 Harrison fought in the US against Dominick Guinn and again lost on points.^[22] Harrison put the defeat down to loss of confidence from his defeat to Williams and insisted he would bounce back.

In June 2006 he scored a three round knockout of Andrew Greeley in an off-TV fight in America,^[23] and was poised for a fight with Matt Skelton to try to resurrect his career. Skelton had beaten Danny Williams in July, winning the title Williams had earlier taken from Harrison. When Skelton dropped out only one week before the fight due to injury, Danny Williams replaced him.^[24]

Williams had trained 8 weeks for a fight with British champion Scott Gammer. This time Harrison fought far more aggressively, decking Williams twice and winning on a third round knockout. Williams suffered a broken nose and severe lacerations.^[25] and Harrison was once again lauded as a contender for a world title. Following the victory over Williams, Harrison signed a promotional deal with Frank Warren, whose aim was to get Harrison a world title fight in 2007.

On 17 February 2007, Harrison was knocked out by Michael Sprott for the European Union title. This third professional loss left Harrison's future uncertain. Harrison claimed that he could make a comeback, but comments Warren suggested that any return to the ring would be for a reduced purse, since the public would have no great interest.^[26]

Harrison returned to fight Paul King for a bout scheduled for 29 September 2007 in Sheffield. However, he and his coach Kelvyn Travis were involved in a car accident on 21 September 2007 in the United States, and Harrison suffered injuries that caused the fight to be cancelled.^[27] Harrison had also suggested that a deal would be announced involving promoter Dennis Hobson, but the cancellation of the fight meant that a formal announcement was on hold.^[28] Harrison underwent surgery for his injuries,^[29] and returned on 19 April 2008, beating the American Jason Barnett in the fifth round on the undercard of the Bernard Hopkins/Joe Calzaghe fight at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.^[30] This bout was the first of a new multi-bout agreement between Harrison and Warren, which aimed to get Harrison a world title shot in 2009.

After proposed matches with Samuel Peter and Martin Rogan fell through,^[31][32] on 6 September 2008 Harrison gained what the BBC described as "an unconvincing victory" over George Arias at the MEN Arena in Manchester.^[33] The fight was overshadowed by Amir Khan's first defeat later on the same card. On 6 December 2008, Harrison's career seemed all but over as he was defeated by the winner of the first Prizefighter tournament and Belfast taxi driver, Martin Rogan. The referee scored the contest 96-95 in favour of the Irishman.^[34]

Comeback[link]

Harrison signed for the Prizefighter tournament which was an eight-man, one-night knockout tournament that took place at ExCeL London on 2 October 2009.^[35] On 1 October 2009, he weighed in for Prizefighter at 18 stones and half a pound. He went on to win the tournament, by way of second round knock-out against Coleman Barrett. Before that he had knocked out Scott Belshaw and won a unanimous decision over Danny Hughes. Following his success in the Prizefighter tournament, it was announced on 15 January 2010 that Harrison would face Albert Sosnowski for the European Boxing Union heavyweight title, with the fight set for 9 April 2010. However Sosnowski called the bout off for a shot at Vitali Klitschko's WBC title.

On 9 April 2010, Harrison won the vacant EBU belt against old foe Michael Sprott at Alexandra Palace. He knocked out Sprott in the final round despite being behind on all three judges scorecards. Harrison claimed he sustained a shoulder injury early in the fight and had to carry on single-handed. BBC Sport said of the fight: "Having come within seconds of a defeat that would have made a mockery of pre-fight assertions that he could face one of the Klitschko brothers for a world title, Harrison said: 'I had to win it somehow.'"^[36]

After his victory over Sprott, Jeff Powell from the Daily Mail said "He showed bravery of such a high and unexpected order that he finally backed his claims to a world title".^[37]

On 24 April 2010, Harrison underwent surgery in Cheadle, Greater Manchester to repair the torn Pectoralis major muscle. The surgeon said he expects Audley to make a "full recovery in about 12 to 16 weeks".^[38]

David Haye[link]

On 8 June 2010, Harrison vacated his European title, announcing his intention of getting a world title shot. He began negotiations with Hayemaker Promotions soon after, which culminated in a world-title fight in the M.E.N. Arena against WBA champion David Haye on 13 November 2010.

Harrison was defeated by Haye, with the fight being stopped in the third round after Harrison was unable to respond to a barrage of punches from Haye.^[39] Statistics from the fight showed that Harrison only landed a single punch in the entire duration of the contest.^[40]

Harrison was heavily criticised for his performance after the bout. British and Commonwealth champion Dereck Chisora stated, "I'd never show my face again if I fought like that. It was pathetic. He disgraced himself and he disgraced British heavyweights, he shouldn't get paid the reported million pounds he is earning after that shambles." ^[41] European light-heavyweight champion Nathan Cleverly also voiced his discontent with the fight, adding Harrison should now retire.^[42] Due to the nature of Harrison's defeat, the BBBC withheld some of the fighter's purse while a full investigation of the bout was carried out.^[43][44] After the investigation into the fight was concluded, Harrison was granted his full purse on 11 January 2011.^[45][46]

Future[link]

On 3 December 2010, it was confirmed Harrison would continue his career as a professional boxer despite the calls for him to retire.^[47]Former British and Commonwealth champion Dereck Chisora was critical of the decision, stating, "He's going to box on, but who's going to buy the tickets to go and watch him? Even if he gives them to you for free are you going to go and watch?...Good luck to Audley anyway." ^[48]
On 15 November 2011, during an interview on BBC Breakfast following his departure from Strictly Come Dancing, Harrison announced that he would return to boxing for one last time saying that "It could be over, but I just need to go and check." He stated that his intention was to fight British Heavyweight Champion Tyson Fury in 2012.

Comeback win[link]

Harrison returned to the ring on 26 May 2012 and boxed Ali Adams at the Brentwood Centre, Essex for the International Masters Championships. Harrison sent his opponent to the canvas with a right hand and although Adams managed to get to his feet, a flurry of follow-up shots from Harrison prompted the referee to step in and end the contest.^[49]

Strictly Come Dancing[link]

On 6 September 2011 it was announced that Harrison would take part in the 2011 series of Strictly Come Dancing.^[50] Harrison and his dance partner Natalie Lowe made it to the seventh round of the contest before being voted out.^[51]

Personal life[link]

Harrison is married to Raychel, an Israel born American and they have a daughter.^[52]

Amateur record[link]

• 1998 at the European Super Heavyweight Championships in Minsk, Belarus, lost to Serguei Lyakhovich (Belarus)
• 1998 Commonwealth Games Super Heavyweight Gold Medalist. Results were:
  • Defeated Fai Falamoe (New Zealand) points
  • Defeated Jim Whitehead (Australia) KO 3
  • Defeated Michael Macquae (Mauritius) KO 1
• 1999 competed at the World Championships in Houston, United States. Results were:
  • Defeated Lazizbek Zokirov (Uzbekistan) points
  • Lost to Sinan Samil Sam (Turkey) points
• Won the Super Heavyweight Gold Medal representing Great Britain at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia. Results were:
  • Defeated Alexei Lezin (Russia) TKO 4
  • Defeated Alexey Mazikin (Ukraine) points
  • Defeated Paolo Vidoz (Italy) points
  • Defeated Mukhtarkhan Dildabekov (Kazakhstan) points

Professional boxing record[link]

28 Wins (21 knockouts, 7 decisions), 5 Losses, 0 Draws[53]
Res.	Opponnent	Type	Rd., Time	Date	Location	Notes
Win	Ali Adams	TKO	4 (10), 2:40	2012-05-26	Brentwood Centre, Brentwood, Essex, England	Won International Masters Heavyweight Title
Loss	David Haye	TKO	3 (12), 1:53	2010-11-13	M.E.N. Arena, Manchester, England	WBA World Heavyweight Title
Win	Michael Sprott	KO	12 (12), 1:05	2010-04-09	Alexandra Palace, Wood Green, London, England	Won EBU European Heavyweight Title.
Win	Coleman Barrett	TKO	2 (3) 2:40	2009-10-02	ExCel Arena, Dockland, London, England	'Prizefighter' Tournament Heavyweight Final
Win	Danny Hughes	Decision Unanimous	3 (3)	2009-10-02	ExCel Arena, Dockland, London, England	'Prizefighter' Tournament Heavyweight Semi-Final
Win	Scott Belshaw	TKO	2 (3) 3:00	2009-10-02	ExCel Arena, Dockland, London, England	'Prizefighter' Tournament Heavyweight Quarter-Final
Loss	Martin Rogan	Points	10 (10)	2008-12-06	ExCel Arena, Dockland, London, England
Win	George Arias	Points	10 (10)	2008-09-06	M.E.N. Arena, Manchester, England
Win	Jason Barnett	TKO	5 (8) 1:48	2008-04-19	Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss	Michael Sprott	TKO	3 (12) 3:00	2007-02-17	The Arena, Wembley, London, England	EBU-EU (European Union) Heavyweight Title Vacant BBBofC English Heavyweight Title Sprott Down in 1st
Win	Danny Williams	TKO	3 (12) 2:32	2006-12-09	ExCel Arena, Dockland, London, England
Win	Andrew Greeley	KO	3 (10) 2:32	2006-06-09	Tropicana Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Loss	Dominick Guinn	Decision Unanimous	10 (10)	2006-04-14	Agua Caliente Casino, Rancho Mirage, California, United States
Loss	Danny Williams	Decision Split	12 (12)	2005-12-10	ExCel Arena, Dockland, London, England	Vacant Commonwealth (British Empire) Heavyweight Title
Win	Robert Wiggins	TKO	4 (10) 3:00	2005-08-18	HP Pavilion, San Jose, California, United States
Win	Robert Davis	TKO	7 (10) 2:21	2005-06-09	Pechanga Entertainment Center, Temecula, California, United States
Win	Tomasz Bonin	TKO	9 (12) 2:17	2004-06-19	Alexandra Palace, Wood Green, London, England	Retained World Boxing Foundation Heavyweight Title
Win	Julius Francis	Decision Unanimous	12 (12)	2004-05-08	Whitchurch Leisure Centre, Bristol, Avon, England	Retained World Boxing Foundation Heavyweight Title Francis (a late replacement for the injured Nikolai Popov) Francis was knocked down in the 12th round.
Win	Richel Hersisia	KO	4 (12) 2:00	2004-03-20	The Arena, Wembley, London, England	Won World Boxing Foundation Heavyweight Title
Win	Brian Nix	TKO	3 (10) 1:41	2003-12-12	Edgewater Casino, Laughlin, Nevada, United States
Win	Lisandro Ezequiel Diaz	TKO	4 (8) 1:32	2003-10-03	Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win	Quinn Navarre	KO	3 (8) 0:32	2003-09-09	Level Nightclub, Miami, Florida, United States
Win	Mathew Ellis	TKO	2 (8) 1:35	2003-05-31	York Hall, Bethnal Green, London, England
Win	Ratko Draskovic	Points	8 (8)	2003-03-29	Conference Centre, Wembley, London, England	Draskovic down once in the 6th round
Win	Rob Calloway	RTD	5 (8)	2003-02-08	Fountain Leisure Centre, Brentford, London, England	Fight is stopped just after the bell had sounded to start round 5 due to a broken jaw.
Win	Shawn Robinson	TKO	1 (6) 2:09	2002-11-23	Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	Wade Lewis	TKO	2 (6) 0:43	2002-10-05	Olympia, Liverpool, Merseyside, England
Win	Dominic Negus	Points	6 (6)	2002-07-10	Conference Centre, Wembley, London, England
Win	Mark Krence	Points	6 (6)	2002-05-21	ExCel Arena, Dockland, London, England
Win	Julius Long	TKO	2 (6) 2:00	2002-04-20	Conference Centre, Wembley, London, England
Win	Piotr Jurczyk	TKO	2 (6) 1:24	2001-10-20	Kelvin Hall, Glasgow, Scotland
Win	Derek McCafferty	Points	6 (6)	2001-09-22	Telewest Arena, Newcastle, Tyne and Wear, England
Win	Mike Middleton	TKO	1 (6) 2:45	2001-05-19	The Arena, Wembley, London, England

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official site
• Professional boxing record for Audley Harrison from BoxRec
• TV appearances at Internet Movie Database

George Harrison MBE
George Harrison at the White House in 1974.
Background information
Also known as	Carl Harrison L'Angelo Misterioso Hari Georgeson Nelson/Spike Wilbury George Harrysong George O'Hara-Smith Jairaj Hari san
Born	(1943-02-25)25 February 1943 Liverpool, England, UK
Died	29 November 2001(2001-11-29) (aged 58) Los Angeles, California, US
Genres	Rock, pop, psychedelic rock, experimental, world music
Occupations	Musician, singer-songwriter, actor, record and film producer
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, ukulele, harmonica, mandolin, tambura, sarod, swarmandal, bass, keyboards, violin, sitar
Years active	1958–2001
Labels	Parlophone, Capitol, Swan, Apple, Vee-Jay, EMI, Dark Horse
Associated acts	The Quarrymen, The Beatles, Traveling Wilburys, Dhani Harrison, Ravi Shankar, Eric Clapton
Website	www.georgeharrison.com
Notable instruments
Gretsch Country Gentleman "Rocky" "Lucy" Rosewood Telecaster

George Harrison,^[1] MBE (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001)^[2] was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles.^[3][4] Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle",^[3] Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian culture and mysticism, and introduced it to the other Beatles, as well as their Western audience.^[5] Following the band's break-up he was a successful solo artist, and later a founding member of the Traveling Wilburys. Harrison was also a session musician and a film and record producer. He is listed at number 11 in Rolling Stone magazine's list of "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".^[6]

Although most of The Beatles' songs were written by Lennon and McCartney, Beatle albums generally included one or two of Harrison's own songs, from With The Beatles onwards.^[7] His later compositions with The Beatles include "Here Comes the Sun", "Something" and "While My Guitar Gently Weeps". By the time of the band's break-up, Harrison had accumulated a backlog of material, which he then released as the triple album All Things Must Pass in 1970, from which two hit singles originated: a double A-side single, "My Sweet Lord" backed with "Isn't It a Pity", and "What Is Life". In addition to his solo work, Harrison co-wrote two hits for former Beatle Ringo Starr, as well as songs for the Traveling Wilburys—the supergroup he formed in 1988 with Jeff Lynne, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, and Roy Orbison.

Harrison embraced Indian culture and Hinduism in the mid-1960s, and helped expand Western awareness of sitar music and of the Hare Krishna movement. With Ravi Shankar he organised the first major charity concert with the 1971 Concert for Bangladesh. In addition to his musical accomplishments, he was also a record producer and co-founder of the production company HandMade Films. In his work as a film producer, he collaborated with people as diverse as the members of Monty Python and Madonna.^[8]

He was married twice, to model Pattie Boyd from 1966 to 1974, and for 23 years to record company secretary Olivia Trinidad Arias, with whom he had one son, Dhani Harrison. He was a close friend of Eric Clapton. To date, he is the only Beatle to have published an autobiography, with I Me Mine in 1980. Harrison died of lung cancer in 2001.

Early years: 1943–1959[link]

Harrison was born in Liverpool, Lancashire, England, on 25 February 1943,^[9][10] the last of four children to Harold Hargreaves Harrison and his wife Louise, née French.^[11]

Harrison's first home – 12 Arnold Grove

He had one sister, Louise, born 16 August 1931, and two brothers, Harry, born 1934, and Peter, born 20 July 1940. His mother was a Liverpool shop assistant, and his father was a bus conductor who had worked as a ship's steward on the White Star Line. His mother's family had Irish roots and were Roman Catholic;^[9] his maternal grandfather, John French, was born in County Wexford, Ireland, emigrating to Liverpool where he married a local girl, Louise Woollam.^[12]

Harrison was born in the house where he lived for his first six years: 12 Arnold Grove, Wavertree, Liverpool, which was a small 2 up, 2 down terraced house in a cul-de-sac, with an alley to the rear. The only heating was a single coal fire, and the toilet was outside. In 1950 the family were offered a council house,^[13] and moved to 25 Upton Green, Speke.^[14]

His first school was Dovedale Primary School, very close to Penny Lane,^[15] the same school as John Lennon who was a couple of years ahead of him.^[16] He passed his 11-plus examination and achieved a place at the Liverpool Institute for Boys (in the building that now houses the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts), which he attended from 1954 to 1959.^[17]

Harrison said that, when he was 12 or 13, he had an "epiphany" of sorts – riding a bike around his neighbourhood, he heard Elvis Presley's "Heartbreak Hotel" playing from a nearby house and was hooked.^[18] Even though he had done well enough on his 11-plus examination to get into the city's best high school, from that point on, the former good student lost interest in school.^[18]

When Harrison was 14 years old, he sat at the back of the class and tried drawing guitars in his schoolbooks: “I was totally into guitars. I heard about this kid at school who had a guitar at £3 10s, it was just a little acoustic round hole. I got the £3 10s from my mother: that was a lot of money for us then.” Harrison bought a Dutch Egmond flat top acoustic guitar.^[19] While at the Liverpool Institute, Harrison formed a skiffle group called the Rebels with his brother Peter and a friend, Arthur Kelly.^[20] At this school he met Paul McCartney, who was one year older.^[21] McCartney later became a member of John Lennon's band called The Quarrymen, which Harrison joined in 1958.^[22]