Ted "Kid" Lewis

Ted "Kid" Lewis (born Gershon Mendeloff; 28 October 1893 – 1970) was an English professional boxer who twice won the World Welterweight (147 lb) Championship. Lewis is often grouped alongside the all-time greats, with ESPN ranking him 41st on their list of the 50 Greatest Boxers of All-Time and boxing historian Bert Sugar placing him 46th in his Top 100 Fighters catalogue. Statistical boxing website BoxRec ranks Lewis as the 17th best welterweight of all-time and the 2nd best UK boxer ever. He is a member of the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame, the Ring Magazine Hall of Fame, and the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Boxing career

Career beginnings

Lewis was born in a gas-lit tenement in the Aldgate Pump section of London’s East End as Gershon Mendeloff. One of his brothers became a boxer under the name of Lou (Kid) Lewis. It was as a member of London’s Judean Athletic Club that Mendeloff assumed the name "Kid" Lewis ("Ted" was added later, in America). At 14 he fought for sixpence and a cup of tea. He later won the Club’s Flyweight title and took home a cup of imitation silver.

Lewis

Coordinates: 58°12′N 6°36′W / 58.2°N 6.6°W / 58.2; -6.6

Lewis (Scottish Gaelic: Leòdhas, pronounced [ʎɔː.əs̪], also Isle of Lewis) is the northern part of Lewis and Harris, the largest island of the Western Isles or Outer Hebrides (an archipelago) of Scotland. The total area of Lewis is 683 square miles (1,770 km²).

Lewis is, in general, the lower lying part of the island, with the other part, Harris, being more mountainous. The flatter, more fertile land means Lewis contains the largest settlement, Stornoway, and three-quarters of the population of the Western Isles. Beyond human habitation, the island's diverse habitats are home to an assortment of flora and fauna, such as the golden eagle, red deer and seals and are recognised in a number of conservation areas.

Lewis is of Presbyterian tradition with a rich history, having once been part of the Norse Kingdom of Mann and the Isles. Today, life is very different from elsewhere in Scotland with Sabbath observance, the Gaelic language and peat cutting retaining more importance than elsewhere. Lewis has a rich cultural heritage as can be seen from its myths and legends as well as the local literary and musical traditions.

Georges Carpentier

Georges Carpentier (pronounced car-pont-yay) (January 12, 1894 – October 28, 1975) was a French boxer, actor and World War I pilot. He fought mainly as a light heavyweight and heavyweight in a career lasting from 1908 to 1926. Nicknamed the "Orchid Man", he stood 5 feet 11 ¹⁄₂ inches (182 cm) and his fighting weight ranged from 126 to 175 pounds (57 to 79 kg). Carpentier was known for his speed, his excellent boxing skills and his extremely hard punch. Halle Georges Carpentier is named after him.

Biography

Born in Liévin in Pas-de-Calais, Carpentier began his career by progressing up through the weight divisions, fighting in every division from welterweight upwards. With his first professional bout at age 14, he was welterweight champion of France and of Europe in 1911, middleweight champion of Europe in 1912, and light heavyweight champion of Europe in 1913. On June 1, 1913, he beat "Bombardier" Billy Wells in Ghent, Belgium to become heavyweight champion of Europe. He defended his title in December against Wells, in January 1914 against Pat O'Keefe and in London on July 16 he beat Ed "Gunboat" Smith to add the "White Heavyweight Champion of the World" to his European title. The white heavyweight title bout sported a purse worth 9,000 pounds sterling (equivalent to approximately $999,320 in today's funds).

Johnny Basham

John Michael "Johnny" Basham (1890 – 7 June 1947) was a Welsh boxer who became British and European champion at both welter and middleweight. His professional career spanned over 20 years, from 1909 to 1929, and after being stationed in Wrexham through military service, he fought most of his bouts in nearby Liverpool.

Basham was the first welterweight to win the Lonsdale Belt outright, successfully defended his British welterweight title on two occasions and also took the Commonwealth Welterweight title in 1919. His career was defined not only by his successes, but also through the death in the ring of opponent Harry Price, which saw Basham face manslaughter charges, and his failed contests with Ted "Kid" Lewis towards his career's end.

Boxing career

Early career

Johnny Basham was born in Newport in southern Wales in 1890.BoxRec have his first professional fight against Boxer Ryan on 18 October 1909, fought at Campbell Bannerman Hall in Newport. The six round fight only lasted until the third when Basham took the match via a knockout. He followed this win with a series of regular contests throughout 1910, mainly taking place in Newport or the surrounding areas of Wales. These were against fighters with limited experience, and his results were patchy, having won three, lost three and drawn one by June 1910, including losing to Fred Dyer, the Singing Boxer on Dyer's debut. Only one match is recorded for the second half of 1910, his first fight outside Wales, when he beat Jim Ashen in the first round at the Frank Gess' Pavilion in Gloucester. Basham began 1911 with a draw with Young Walters in Pontnewydd on 6 February. No other bouts are recorded until August, but Basham then undertook a heavy schedule of fights, taking in nine matches in the second half of the year. Basham only lost one of the fights, of which three were fought in Wrexham in north Wales, and two in Liverpool.

Noel "Boy" McCormick

Noel Hugh "Boy" McCormick (25 December 1899 – 22 January 1939) was a British boxer who won the British light heavyweight title in 1919, holding the title until 1922.

Career

Born in India, and of Irish descent, McCormick was based in Salford. He joined the British Army in 1914 as a band boy, with the title of "Boy" sticking with him throughout his career. While in the army he began boxing and met world flyweight champion Jimmy Wilde who was serving as a drill instructor.

He had his first professional fight in 1916, and after a string of victories in 1918 he got a shot at the British light heavyweight title vacated by Dick Smith in April 1919. He won the title after his opponent Harold Rolph was disqualified in the 15th round. He travelled to the United States where he had 15 unbeaten fights during 1919/1920, winning 11 and drawing four, his opponents including Gunboat Smith and Battling Levinsky.

He returned to England and challenged Joe Beckett for the British heavyweight title in September 1921; Beckett won by a 12th round TKO in a fight at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden attended by Charlie Chaplin who had reserved three boxes for his party. He then fought Ted "Kid" Lewis in a non-title fight at the Royal Albert Hall in November, with Lewis winning by a TKO in the 14th round after knocking one of McCormick's teeth out and opening a cut over his eye. He relinquished the British light heavyweight title voluntarily in 1922.