Juan Carlos Lectoure
Encyclopedia
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
businessman, mainly involved in boxing
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
events and former owner of Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
' Luna Park
Luna Park, Buenos Aires
For any of the amusement parks of the same name, see Luna Park; for any other use of the term, see Luna Park Luna Park is an 8,000-seat arena, located on the corner of Corrientes and Bouchard Avenues, in the barrio of San Nicolás, east Buenos Aires city and near Puerto Madero...
stadium.
He was born and raised in the Balvanera
Balvanera
Balvanera is a neighborhood of Buenos Aires, Argentina.-Origin of Name and Alternative Names:The official name, Balvanera, is the name of the parroquia centered around the church of Nuestra Señora de Balvanera, erected in 1831.The zone around Corrientes avenue is known as Once after Plaza Once de...
section of Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
, and at the age of 14, took up boxing at the Buenos Aires Gymnastics and Fencing Club; an injury, however, resulted in his mother's insistence that he abandon the pastime.
The Lectoures had been partners in the Luna Park coliseum since 1941, and he inherited the lucrative business from his father, who died in 1950. Mentored by Juan Manuel Morales, Lectoure took control of the venue at age 20, and during the era from 1956 to 2000, well-known figures in Argentine boxing, such as Horacio Accavallo
Horacio Accavallo
Horacio Enrique Accavallo was an Argentine flyweight boxer who fought from 1956 until 1967. He retired with a record of 75 wins , 2 losses and 6 draws....
, Ringo Bonavena, Pedro Décima
Pedro Ruben Decima
Pedro Ruben Decima is a former professional boxer from Argentina.-Amateur career:As an amateur Decima represented Argentina as a bantamweight at the 1984 Olympic Games...
, Víctor Galíndez
Víctor Galíndez
Víctor Emilio Galíndez was an Argentine boxer who was the third Latin American to win the world Light Heavyweight championship, after Puerto Rico's José Torres and Venezuela's Vicente Rondon.Galíndez was born in Vedia in the Leandro N...
, Nicolino Locche
Nicolino Locche
Nicolino Locche was an Argentine boxer from Tunuyán, Mendoza. He was of Italian origin, with his ancestors coming from Sardinia...
, Carlos Monzón
Carlos Monzón
Carlos Monzón was an Argentine professional boxer who held the undisputed world middleweight title for 7 years, during which he successfully defended the title 14 times....
, Pascual Pérez and Juan Roldán
Juan Roldán
Juan Domingo Roldán is an Argentine former boxer whose nickname was Martillo . Roldán was very famous across Latin America during the 1980s, many articles about him appearing on Ring En Español magazine....
all either debuted or fought title bouts promoted by Lectoure at Luna Park. The venue was also well-known for its variety of music recitals, hosting musicians from Argentine tango
Argentine tango
Argentine tango is a musical genre of simple quadruple metre and binary musical form, and the social dance that accompanies it. Its lyrics and music are marked by nostalgia, expressed through melodic instruments including the bandoneon. Originated at the ending of the 19th century in the suburbs of...
bandoneon
Bandoneón
The bandoneón is a type of concertina particularly popular in Argentina and Uruguay. It plays an essential role in the orquesta típica, the tango orchestra...
ist Aníbal Troilo
Aníbal Troilo
Aníbal Carmelo Troilo was an Argentine tango musician.Anibal Troilo was a bandoneon player, composer, and bandleader in Argentina. His orquesta típica was among the most popular with social dancers during the golden age of tango , but he changed to a concert sound by the late 1950s...
to the Godfather of Soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
, James Brown
James Brown
James Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is the originator of Funk and is recognized as a major figure in the 20th century popular music for both his vocals and dancing. He has been referred to as "The Godfather of Soul," "Mr...
.
Lectoure later promoted boxing in Miami, Florida
Miami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
.
A chain smoker until 1982, Lectoure developed heart disease and underwent four bypasses
Coronary artery bypass surgery
Coronary artery bypass surgery, also coronary artery bypass graft surgery, and colloquially heart bypass or bypass surgery is a surgical procedure performed to relieve angina and reduce the risk of death from coronary artery disease...
in 1990, performed by noted cardiac specialist Dr. René Favaloro
René Favaloro
Dr. René Gerónimo Favaloro was an Argentine cardiac surgeon who created the technique for coronary bypass surgery....
. He died in 2002, at age 65.