Willie de Wit
Encyclopedia
William Theodore "Willie" de Wit (born June 13, 1961 in Three Hills, Alberta
) is a Canadian lawyer and retired professional Canadian boxer
. De Wit fought for Canada and won the Heavyweight silver medal
at the 1984 Summer Olympics
. De Wit and teammate Shawn O'Sullivan
were heavily-touted going into the Games, as both had won the world championship.
, but decided to quit football after growing tired of team sports after losing patience with his high school teammates. He began going to a Grande Prairie health club, which was run by a man named Jim Murrie. At the time, de Wit's father Len was terminally ill with a brain tumor so Willie started hitting the heavy bags to stay out of the house and to stay in shape. Impressed with his dedication and size, Murrie introduced de Wit to Dr. Harry Snatic a dentist and rancher who had been a youth boxing coach in Louisiana before moving his family in 1971 to Beaverlodge which is a small village near Grande Prairie, who worked out with de Wit three times a week, first in the health club, until it went out of business a short time later, and then in the de Wits' unheated garage where temperatures would often get to 10 or 20 degrees below zero.
De Wit's first fight came at the Alberta provincial championships, in March 1979 in Medicine Hat. Snatic entered deWit in the light heavyweight intermediate novice division for boxers age 17 to 20 with less than 10 fights. De Wit knocked out his first opponent in 20 seconds - which caused the coaches of the six other fighters in the division to pull their fighters. De Wit had won his first championship. Snatic then entered Willie in the British Columbia
Golden Glove championships. where he fought 18-year-old Shane Anderson who was the western Canadian 178-pound champion and a veteran of about 40 fights. De Wit lost by decision. But he did beat Anderson in two of three return matches. In the last of those bouts, de Wit knocked out Anderson, who never fought again.
Snatic then took Willie to fight at the Washington State Penitentiary
where he knocked out his opponent in the opening minute of the first round, nearly causing a prison riot. Afterwards in April 1982 Snatic decided to sell his ranch and moved to Calgary. de Wit went with him in order to find sparring partners, and to train with a Ugandan exile named Mansoor Esmail, who was Calgary's top boxing coach, and was considered a physical-conditioning genius.
Willie's first major victory came in Las Vegas in June 1982 when he knocked out Cuba's Pedro Cardenas to win his first North American title. Then he won gold at the Commonwealth Games; it took him a total of three minutes and 12 seconds to knock out three opponents. In March 1983 he defeated Aleksandr Yagubkin of the U.S.S.R. to win the world title. Then in September 1983 he defended his North American title against highly touted Cuban Aurelio Toyo. De Wit was not perfect, however, losing a decision to Arnola Vandereijde in January 1983.
Leading up to the 1984 Olympics, a benefit in Calgary starring boxing fan Ryan O'Neal
and Farrah Fawcett
raised $70,000 to finance Willie's training. At this point Snatic began importing professional sparring partners from the United States.
de Wit lost the gold medal match to Henry Tillman
of the United States. Heading in to the games, de Wit and fellow Canadian Shawn O' Sullivan were considered favorites, especially by Canadians who fully expected de Wit to win the gold. De Wit felt the pressure and says that he does not have many good memories of the games.
De Wit had an otherwise uneventful pro career, and was knocked down four times in a second round TKO loss to Bert Cooper
in 1987. The loss to Cooper was de Wit's only career defeat, as he retired after six consecutive wins, the last of which being a decision victory over Tillman.
After announcing his retirement he started a concrete surfacing company in California, which he eventually left to return to Canada. A friend of his who was a judge, suggested he get an education and become a lawyer.
de Wit returned to school and graduated from the University of Alberta in 1994 with a law degree. He articled to the Alberta Court of Appeal and the civil law firm of Howard Mackie and was called to the Alberta Bar in September 1995. After practicing with Howard Mackie, de Wit joined the firm of Evans Martin Wilson (now Wolch, Hursh, deWit, Silverberg, & Watts) in 1996 and he remains with the firm until this day, being its longest standing member.
In 1995 de Wit was inducted into the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. He also has a road named after him in Grande Prairie, Alberta
.
Three Hills, Alberta
Three Hills is a town located in the southern part of the province of Alberta, Canada. It is so named because of the three highly visible hills that are situated to its north.-History:...
) is a Canadian lawyer and retired professional Canadian boxer
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...
. De Wit fought for Canada and won the Heavyweight silver medal
Olympic medalists in boxing
This is the complete list of Olympic medalists in boxing from 1904 to 2008.-Light flyweight:*1968 - : up to 48 kg.-Flyweight:*1904: up to 105 lb *1920-1936: up to 112 lb *1948-1964: up to 51 kg...
at the 1984 Summer Olympics
1984 Summer Olympics
The 1984 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1984...
. De Wit and teammate Shawn O'Sullivan
Shawn O'Sullivan
Shawn O'Sullivan is a retired Canadian boxer who won gold at the World Amateur Championships in 1981 and the light middleweight silver medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics.-Background:...
were heavily-touted going into the Games, as both had won the world championship.
Background
De Wit played football in high school and was an all-star quarterback. He was offered a scholarship to the University of AlbertaUniversity of Alberta
The University of Alberta is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta and Henry Marshall Tory, its first president, it is widely recognized as one of the best universities in Canada...
, but decided to quit football after growing tired of team sports after losing patience with his high school teammates. He began going to a Grande Prairie health club, which was run by a man named Jim Murrie. At the time, de Wit's father Len was terminally ill with a brain tumor so Willie started hitting the heavy bags to stay out of the house and to stay in shape. Impressed with his dedication and size, Murrie introduced de Wit to Dr. Harry Snatic a dentist and rancher who had been a youth boxing coach in Louisiana before moving his family in 1971 to Beaverlodge which is a small village near Grande Prairie, who worked out with de Wit three times a week, first in the health club, until it went out of business a short time later, and then in the de Wits' unheated garage where temperatures would often get to 10 or 20 degrees below zero.
De Wit's first fight came at the Alberta provincial championships, in March 1979 in Medicine Hat. Snatic entered deWit in the light heavyweight intermediate novice division for boxers age 17 to 20 with less than 10 fights. De Wit knocked out his first opponent in 20 seconds - which caused the coaches of the six other fighters in the division to pull their fighters. De Wit had won his first championship. Snatic then entered Willie in the British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
Golden Glove championships. where he fought 18-year-old Shane Anderson who was the western Canadian 178-pound champion and a veteran of about 40 fights. De Wit lost by decision. But he did beat Anderson in two of three return matches. In the last of those bouts, de Wit knocked out Anderson, who never fought again.
Snatic then took Willie to fight at the Washington State Penitentiary
Washington State Penitentiary
Washington State Penitentiary is a Washington State Department of Corrections men's prison located in Walla Walla, Washington...
where he knocked out his opponent in the opening minute of the first round, nearly causing a prison riot. Afterwards in April 1982 Snatic decided to sell his ranch and moved to Calgary. de Wit went with him in order to find sparring partners, and to train with a Ugandan exile named Mansoor Esmail, who was Calgary's top boxing coach, and was considered a physical-conditioning genius.
Willie's first major victory came in Las Vegas in June 1982 when he knocked out Cuba's Pedro Cardenas to win his first North American title. Then he won gold at the Commonwealth Games; it took him a total of three minutes and 12 seconds to knock out three opponents. In March 1983 he defeated Aleksandr Yagubkin of the U.S.S.R. to win the world title. Then in September 1983 he defended his North American title against highly touted Cuban Aurelio Toyo. De Wit was not perfect, however, losing a decision to Arnola Vandereijde in January 1983.
Leading up to the 1984 Olympics, a benefit in Calgary starring boxing fan Ryan O'Neal
Ryan O'Neal
Charles Patrick Ryan O'Neal , better known as Ryan O'Neal, is an American actor best known for his appearances in the ABC nighttime soap opera Peyton Place and for his roles in such films as Paper Moon , Stanley Kubrick's Barry Lyndon , A Bridge Too Far , and Love Story , for which he received...
and Farrah Fawcett
Farrah Fawcett
Farrah Fawcett was an American actress and artist. A multiple Golden Globe and Emmy Award nominee, Fawcett rose to international fame when she first appeared as private investigator Jill Munroe in the first season of the television series Charlie's Angels, in 1976...
raised $70,000 to finance Willie's training. At this point Snatic began importing professional sparring partners from the United States.
Olympics
At the 1984 Los Angeles OlympicsBoxing at the 1984 Summer Olympics
Boxing at the 1984 Summer Olympics took place in the Memorial Sports Arena in Los Angeles, California. The boxing schedule began on July 29 and ended on August 11. Twelve men's boxing events were contested.-Light Flyweight :...
de Wit lost the gold medal match to Henry Tillman
Henry Tillman
Henry Durand Tillman is a former American boxer.-Amateur Career:Tillman twice defeated Mike Tyson as an amateur, winning both bouts via close decisions. Tillman went on to win heavyweight Gold at the Los Angeles Olympics....
of the United States. Heading in to the games, de Wit and fellow Canadian Shawn O' Sullivan were considered favorites, especially by Canadians who fully expected de Wit to win the gold. De Wit felt the pressure and says that he does not have many good memories of the games.
Pro career and later life
Tabbed early as a "Great White Hope", de Wit turned professional immediately after the Olympics and persuaded by a contract offer reportedly worth $5 million, began to train and fight out of Burnet, Texas. He then defeated Ken Lakusta to capture the Canadian heavyweight championship.De Wit had an otherwise uneventful pro career, and was knocked down four times in a second round TKO loss to Bert Cooper
Bert Cooper
Bertram Cooper , also known as Smokin' Bert Cooper is a heavyweight boxer, most famous for his devastating punching power and several wild brawls in the 1990s.-Pro career:...
in 1987. The loss to Cooper was de Wit's only career defeat, as he retired after six consecutive wins, the last of which being a decision victory over Tillman.
After announcing his retirement he started a concrete surfacing company in California, which he eventually left to return to Canada. A friend of his who was a judge, suggested he get an education and become a lawyer.
de Wit returned to school and graduated from the University of Alberta in 1994 with a law degree. He articled to the Alberta Court of Appeal and the civil law firm of Howard Mackie and was called to the Alberta Bar in September 1995. After practicing with Howard Mackie, de Wit joined the firm of Evans Martin Wilson (now Wolch, Hursh, deWit, Silverberg, & Watts) in 1996 and he remains with the firm until this day, being its longest standing member.
In 1995 de Wit was inducted into the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. He also has a road named after him in Grande Prairie, Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
.
External links
- de Wit's Calgary Law Firm
- Willie de Wit at The Canadian EncyclopediaThe Canadian EncyclopediaThe Canadian Encyclopedia is a source of information on Canada. It is available online, at no cost. The Canadian Encyclopedia is available in both English and French and includes some 14,000 articles in each language on a wide variety of subjects including history, popular culture, events, people,...
- Canadian Olympic Committee