Darren Sutherland
Encyclopedia
Darren John Sutherland (18 April 1982 – 14 September 2009) was an Irish
professional boxer
from County Meath, Ireland. His amateur
career was crowned by a bronze medal for Ireland
in the middleweight
division at the 2008 Olympics
in Beijing
, China
.
senior title in 2005, 2006 and 2007. He faced Edward Healy in the 2006 and 2007 Final and the young Darren O'Neill in 2008 winning all three.
who went on to win a silver medal in the competition.
He was the third ranked European boxer in the middleweight division.
He lost at the first qualifier to English southpaw James DeGale
22:23 but qualified by winning a gold medal
as the second Olympic qualifier for Europe
. In the final he stopped Jean Mickael Raymond.
2007
in the semi-finals 10-3. Sutherland announced that it was his last ever amateur boxing match.
. On 18 December 2008, Sutherland made a winning start to his professional career with a first round knockout of Georgi Iliev in Dublin. After the bout, Sutherland's promoter Frank Maloney said "I think we've found a real superstar here tonight and this is just the start of a long journey". His next fight, against Siarhei Navarka on 6 March at Robin Park Arena in Wigan
, ended with Sutherland winning by a third round stoppage.
Sutherland won his third fight at the Fenton Manor Sports Complex in Stoke-on-Trent
on 29 May against Vepkhia Tchilaia. Sutherland won his next fight against Gennadiy Rasalev in York Hall
, London.
}
|-align=center
|Win || align=left|
Siarhei Navarka
|06/06/09
|Frank Moloney
|align=left|Robin Park Arena, Wigan
|align=left|
|-align=center
|Win || align=left|
Georgi Iliev
|18/12/08
|Frank Moloney
|align=left|DCU Sports Complex
, Dublin
|align=left|
. He is alleged to have committed suicide by hanging himself. It has also been confirmed that he suffered from depression. Olympic gold medalist, James Degale
commented on the death stating: "It is very, very sad news - I just can't believe it, It is a tragedy. First and foremost, my heart goes out to his family. I just could not believe it; my heart went to the floor when I heard. He was a big part of my Olympic medal journey and it is just terrible. I just do not know what to say except that he was a brilliant fighter, in fact an excellent fighter, and he was a gentleman outside the ring as well. He had an Olympic bronze medal and his whole life to look forward to. He had a great future, and my heart goes out to everyone who knew him."
He was exhumed in September 2010 for a further private postmortem at the request of his family.
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
professional boxer
Professional Boxing
Professional boxing, or prizefighting, emerged in the early twentieth century as boxing gradually attained legitimacy and became a regulated, sanctioned sport. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse which is divided among the fighters and promoters as determined by contract...
from County Meath, Ireland. His amateur
Amateur boxing
Amateur boxing is practised at the collegiate level, at the Olympic Games and Commonwealth Games, and in many other venues sponsored by amateur boxing associations. Amateur boxing bouts are short in duration and fighters wear head protection, so this type of competition prizes point-scoring rather...
career was crowned by a bronze medal for Ireland
Irish Amateur Boxing Association
The Irish Amateur Boxing Association is the governing body of amateur boxing in Ireland. It was founded in 1911 following a meeting in Dublin.-Structure:...
in the middleweight
Middleweight
Middleweight is a division, or weight class, in boxing. Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have begun in the 1840s. In the bare-knuckle era, the first middleweight championship fight was between Tom Chandler and Dooney Harris in 1897...
division at the 2008 Olympics
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...
in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
.
Provincial and national titles
Sutherland represented the St. Saviour's ABC in Dublin and won the LeinsterLeinster
Leinster is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the east of Ireland. It comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Mide, Osraige and Leinster. Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the historic fifths of Leinster and Mide gradually merged, mainly due to the impact of the Pale, which straddled...
senior title in 2005, 2006 and 2007. He faced Edward Healy in the 2006 and 2007 Final and the young Darren O'Neill in 2008 winning all three.
European and World championships
At the World Championships 2007 he was beaten by Alfonso BlancoAlfonso Blanco (boxer)
Alfonso Blanco Parra is an undefeated Venezuelan boxer in the Light Middleweight division. He was the 2008 Olympian for Venezuela and he also won the Middleweight silver medal at the 2007 World Amateur Boxing Championships.-Amateur career:Blanco won the 2006 South America title against Carlos...
who went on to win a silver medal in the competition.
He was the third ranked European boxer in the middleweight division.
He lost at the first qualifier to English southpaw James DeGale
James DeGale
He is European super middleweight championJames Frederick DeGale MBE is an English boxer and Olympic gold medalist. He was born in Harlesden, London. He started amateur boxing at the Trojan club at the age of 10 before moving to Dale Youth boxing club...
22:23 but qualified by winning a gold medal
Gold medal
A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
as the second Olympic qualifier for Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. In the final he stopped Jean Mickael Raymond.
World amateur championship results
2005- Defeated Badrakh Ganbold (Mongolia) RSCO 2
- Defeated Edwin RodriguezEdwin RodriguezEdwin Rodríguez Morales is the former manager of the Florida Marlins of Major League Baseball's National League. He also played Major League Baseball briefly in the early 1980s as an infielder.-Playing career:...
(United States) RSCO 2 - Lost to Matvey KorobovMatvey KorobovMatvey Georgiyevich Korobov is a Russian professional boxer best known for winning the middleweight amateur world title in 2005 and 2007, and being a part of the Russian team at the 2005 Boxing World Cup.-Amateur career:...
(Russia) RSCO 3
2007
- Defeated Roy CookeRoy CookeRoy Cooke is a professional poker player, poker consultant and author living in Las Vegas, Nevada. He was born in Atlanta, Georgia, April 12, 1957. He spent his childhood in Derby, England and Bellevue, Washington...
(Dominica) walk-over - Defeated Andranik HakobyanAndranik HakobyanAndranik Hakobyan is an Armenian amateur boxer. He qualified for the 2008 Olympics at middleweight....
(Armenia) 22-20 - Lost to Alfonso BlancoAlfonso Blanco (boxer)Alfonso Blanco Parra is an undefeated Venezuelan boxer in the Light Middleweight division. He was the 2008 Olympian for Venezuela and he also won the Middleweight silver medal at the 2007 World Amateur Boxing Championships.-Amateur career:Blanco won the 2006 South America title against Carlos...
(Venezuela) 13-20
Olympic Games
Sutherland reached the semi-finals of the boxing tournament in the 2008 Olympics and took a bronze medal. He lost his fight to James DeGaleJames DeGale
He is European super middleweight championJames Frederick DeGale MBE is an English boxer and Olympic gold medalist. He was born in Harlesden, London. He started amateur boxing at the Trojan club at the age of 10 before moving to Dale Youth boxing club...
in the semi-finals 10-3. Sutherland announced that it was his last ever amateur boxing match.
Olympic results
2008- 1st round bye
- Defeated Nabil KasselNabil KasselNabil Kassel is an Algerian boxer best known to win the middleweight gold at the 2007 All-Africa Games. The family name is Kassel, Algerians generally write this first .-Career:...
(Algeria) RSC 4 - Defeated Alfonso Blanco (boxer)Alfonso Blanco (boxer)Alfonso Blanco Parra is an undefeated Venezuelan boxer in the Light Middleweight division. He was the 2008 Olympian for Venezuela and he also won the Middleweight silver medal at the 2007 World Amateur Boxing Championships.-Amateur career:Blanco won the 2006 South America title against Carlos...
(Venezuela) 11-1 - Lost to James DeGaleJames DeGaleHe is European super middleweight championJames Frederick DeGale MBE is an English boxer and Olympic gold medalist. He was born in Harlesden, London. He started amateur boxing at the Trojan club at the age of 10 before moving to Dale Youth boxing club...
(Great Britain) 3-10
Professional career
Following the exposure gained at the Olympics, Sutherland was offered a number of contracts as a professional boxer. In October 2008 he signed terms with London-based promoter Frank MaloneyFrank Maloney
Frank Maloney is a boxing manager and promoter and United Kingdom Independence Party politician. He is most famous for managing Lennox Lewis to the Undisputed Heavyweight Championship of the World.-Early life:...
. On 18 December 2008, Sutherland made a winning start to his professional career with a first round knockout of Georgi Iliev in Dublin. After the bout, Sutherland's promoter Frank Maloney said "I think we've found a real superstar here tonight and this is just the start of a long journey". His next fight, against Siarhei Navarka on 6 March at Robin Park Arena in Wigan
Wigan
Wigan is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It stands on the River Douglas, south-west of Bolton, north of Warrington and west-northwest of Manchester. Wigan is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its administrative centre. The town of Wigan had a total...
, ended with Sutherland winning by a third round stoppage.
Sutherland won his third fight at the Fenton Manor Sports Complex in Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent , also called The Potteries is a city in Staffordshire, England, which forms a linear conurbation almost 12 miles long, with an area of . Together with the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme Stoke forms The Potteries Urban Area...
on 29 May against Vepkhia Tchilaia. Sutherland won his next fight against Gennadiy Rasalev in York Hall
York Hall
The York Hall is a health and leisure centre and one of Britain's best known boxing venues.The venue is situated on Old Ford Road in Bethnal Green, London, England. The hall, opened in 1929 with a capacity of 1,200, stages boxing as well as providing a gymnasium and swimming pool.The hall is owned...
, London.
| 4 Wins (4 Knockouts), 0 Defeat, 0 Draws | |||||
| Result | Opponent | Date | Promotor | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win |  Gennadiy Rasalev |
30/06/09 | Frank Moloney | York Hall York Hall The York Hall is a health and leisure centre and one of Britain's best known boxing venues.The venue is situated on Old Ford Road in Bethnal Green, London, England. The hall, opened in 1929 with a capacity of 1,200, stages boxing as well as providing a gymnasium and swimming pool.The hall is owned... , London London London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its... |
|
| Win |  Vepkhia Tchilaia |
29/05/09 | Frank Moloney | Fenton Manor Sports Complex, Stoke-on-Trent Stoke-on-Trent Stoke-on-Trent , also called The Potteries is a city in Staffordshire, England, which forms a linear conurbation almost 12 miles long, with an area of . Together with the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme Stoke forms The Potteries Urban Area... |
|-align=center
|Win || align=left|
Siarhei Navarka|06/06/09
|Frank Moloney
|align=left|Robin Park Arena, Wigan
Wigan
Wigan is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It stands on the River Douglas, south-west of Bolton, north of Warrington and west-northwest of Manchester. Wigan is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its administrative centre. The town of Wigan had a total...
|align=left|
|-align=center
|Win || align=left|
Georgi Iliev|18/12/08
|Frank Moloney
|align=left|DCU Sports Complex
Dublin City University
Dublin City University is a university situated between Glasnevin, Santry, Ballymun and Whitehall on the Northside of Dublin in Ireland...
, Dublin
|align=left|
Death
On 14 September 2009, Sutherland was found dead at his apartment in Bromley, Greater London, by his promoter, Frank MaloneyFrank Maloney
Frank Maloney is a boxing manager and promoter and United Kingdom Independence Party politician. He is most famous for managing Lennox Lewis to the Undisputed Heavyweight Championship of the World.-Early life:...
. He is alleged to have committed suicide by hanging himself. It has also been confirmed that he suffered from depression. Olympic gold medalist, James Degale
James DeGale
He is European super middleweight championJames Frederick DeGale MBE is an English boxer and Olympic gold medalist. He was born in Harlesden, London. He started amateur boxing at the Trojan club at the age of 10 before moving to Dale Youth boxing club...
commented on the death stating: "It is very, very sad news - I just can't believe it, It is a tragedy. First and foremost, my heart goes out to his family. I just could not believe it; my heart went to the floor when I heard. He was a big part of my Olympic medal journey and it is just terrible. I just do not know what to say except that he was a brilliant fighter, in fact an excellent fighter, and he was a gentleman outside the ring as well. He had an Olympic bronze medal and his whole life to look forward to. He had a great future, and my heart goes out to everyone who knew him."
He was exhumed in September 2010 for a further private postmortem at the request of his family.