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Boxer Dave Sands poses for the camera at Solomon's Gym, London, on March 21, 1949, in preparation for a fight against Tommy Yarosz. A memorial dedicated to the Aboriginal hero has been updated and will be unveiled in December to commemorate his 80th birth |
Updated memorial for boxing hero
Issue 119 - 30 Nov 2006
Issue 119, November 30, 2006: A public ceremony to upgrade the existing plaque memorial to Aboriginal boxing hero Dave Sands will be held on December 19 in Sydney.
Born David Ritchie in 1926 at Burnt Ridge near Kempsey, Dave Sands and his five brothers took on the Sands name, taken from a train guard who helped Percy Ritchie, the second oldest, travel to fight fare free in 1940.
Proud representatives of the Dhungutti people, the Fighting Sands Brothers are one of Australia's greatest sporting family.
At the time of his death in a truck accident at the age of 26 at Dungog, near Newcastle, Dave Sands was rated the number three Middleweight contender in the World behind Champion Sugar Ray Robinson, and had scored his 97th victory (62 ko) against 10 defeats and a draw.
In his 11-year career, Sands held the Australian Middle, Light Heavyweight and Heavyweight Titles and won the Commonwealth Middleweight Title by knocking out Dick Turpin, brother of Randolph, in one round in 1949 in England.
He beat future Middleweight Champion and Hall of Famer, Carl (Bobo) Olson twice, first in Sydney and then in Chicago.
Olson, standing in the Madison Square Garden ring after he had won the vacant world crown in 1953 said: "if Dave Sands was alive, this title would be his".
In 1950 and 1951 Dave won the Sports Novel public vote for Sportsman of the year over Clive Churchill, Neil Harvey and Keith Miller.
After winning it for the third time in 1953 Dave returned the award to the organisers and is quoted as saying, "Listen, give it to somebody else, I've had my day in the sun".
The man the Americans called the "boxer with the educated left hand" received his due when he was inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame in 1998 at a ceremony held in Los Angeles and there can be no greater tribute than that provided by a sportsman's peers.
Continued from back page
The following Daily Mirror Tribute was printed the day after his funeral which was attended by 100,000 people.
"I suppose there never was a world-class fighter who was more modest, less affected by the glitter and glamour of it than Dave. In his whole career there was never a nasty whisper about him. And who'll forget the Empire, Australian and so on Champion saying after a big fight, "well, got to be getting home", sleeping like a baby on a bench at Central Railway Station and then climbing onto a paper train which carried him and news of another great win the draughty hundred miles back to Newcastle. When our children are old, old people, they'll still be talking about this gentleman of the ring."*
Hosted by Gadigal Information Services (Koori Radio) and Sydney City Council, the event on December 19 will commemorate Dave Sands' 80th birthday year. It will be held at the corner of Broadway and Glebe Point Road in Glebe, Sydney.
The event MC will be Claude Williams and speakers will include Aboriginal boxing legend George Bracken, a representative from Sydney City Council, Metropolitan Aboriginal Land Council chairperson Rob Welsh, Boxing Historian Michael Clarke and a member of Dave Sands family.
A Dave Sands Tribute Radio Show will also be broadcast by the Sweet Science National Boxing Show on December 18 from 6-8pm. The show will be webcast on www.4k1g.org
For further details log on to www.gadigal.org.au/sweetscience
* Historical information courtesy of Michael Clarke and Tony Nobbs
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