West Ham Amateur Boxing Club is situated in the heart of London’s East End, in the London Borough of Newham. This part of London has long been synonymous with talent notably boxing and football, with many influential figures emerging. This is also where the capital’s most underprivileged communities live, and the boxing club has been a safe-haven for people from all backgrounds.
Here we take decade by decade look at the history of the club and the boxers who made West Ham great.
The West Ham Boys Amateur Boxing club was founded in 1922 by Captain Dave Myers MBE, JP, and a local man from Forest Gate. He was with the club until he was 93 years old, and for many years he was described as “Simply the heart & soul of the club”. The club started life training in a small army hut after some initial difficulties of finding its feet. In the next two years, it had three finalists in the All England schoolboy championships. The club moved to its famous headquarters at the Black Lion pub in 1935 and was flourishing, regularly turning out teams in competitions against various service teams, so much so that this became an annual feature of the club calendar. Between 1930 and 1939, the crossed hammer crest of the club became well-known in the amateur boxing world. The club continued to grow, not merely in numbers but also in boxing quality, and the shows were always very well-supported by the public in the Canning Town Public Hall.
The 1940s saw the club have its first national champion with V. Randall winning the schoolboys in 1947. Then, in 1948, Ron Cooper became the club's first national senior ABA champion, and the following year, E. Russell became the national junior ABA champion.
The 1950s was a golden era, with the club firmly cementing its position as one of the best clubs in the country when Terry Spinks won a gold medal in the Olympic games, and the club produced multiple national champions. Terence "Terry" George Spinks MBE (28 February 1938 – 26 April 2012) was a West Ham boxer from Canning Town who represented Great Britain at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. Terry won the gold medal in the flyweight division (under 51 kg). In the final, he defeated Mircea Dobrescu of Romania on points. He was also British featherweight champion from 1960 to 1961 in the professional ranks.
Ron Redrup became the first to win the national schoolboys (1950), junior (1952), and senior (1956) ABA titles. Joey Festa and Ron Barton were also notable champions during this period.
The new gym was a former bottling store and was opened in late March 1950 by the club's new patron, Lieutenant Colonel John Courage (Chairman of Courage & Co). His family were financial benefactors to the club. The new facilities were described as the best in the country, and new dressing rooms were added in 1953, which was greatly needed as there were an estimated 250 active boxers at that time. In 1955, well-known international runner Chris Chattaway opened the club's own running track on derelict land adjoining the gym, which the boxers used until 2012. Brothers Ron & Dennis Hinson won multiple titles in the 1950s.
There were many notable names at West Ham Boxing Club during the 1960s
Billy Walker won the senior ABA title in 1961 and had a successful professional career.
Jimmy Tibbs won three schoolboys titles (1960, 1961, & 1962) and the NABC (1963) for the club. He went on to have a great career in the professional ranks, training many world champions. Jimmy is widely regarded as one of the best trainers that the UK ever produced. Jimmy's son, Mark, also represented the club, winning the national ABA Schoolboys title in 1982.
Jimmy is believed to be one of the main reasons Micky May came to the club.
Joe Wreden won the national Schools (1967), Junior (1969), and NABC (1968 & 1969) titles. He later won the Senior title for Repton. His sons also boxed for the club, with Joe Jr. winning the national schoolboys title for the club in 1987.
A. Smith won the national juniors (1966) and NABC (1966, 1967 & 1969) titles for the club.
Jimmy Lavey won the schools (1962) and junior titles (1964 & 1965) and the NABC (1964 & 1965). Jimmy went on to coach at the club before leaving to start Newham Boxing Club in the early 1980s.
Jimmy Batten had a successful junior amateur career, winning three national schoolboys titles (two for West Ham in 1970 & 1971), two junior (1971 & 1972) ABA titles, and an NABC (1972) championship, going unbeaten for five and a half years. Jimmy turned pro and took the British title in 1977 at aged 21. Later in his career, he faced boxing great Roberto Durán in November 1982 in the USA. Durán took a unanimous decision, but Batten took him the distance despite suffering three broken ribs.
The popular Johnny Claydon won the 1972 NABC title in the West Ham colours before turning pro.
Ron “Chazza” Chapman was at the club from the 1950s and held many roles during his 30 years at the club. His sons boxed for the club, with Joey Chapman winning the National NABC title for the club in 1970. Joey started training the lads at the club while still boxing, before deciding against a career in the pro ranks. Joey later started Newham Boxing Club with his father Chazza and Jimmy Lavey.
George Bowers M.B.E. boxed for the club before returning as a trainer. From Custom House, his family have a 300 year history in the sport. He was later associated with St Georges, Poplar, and Repton boxing clubs. Georgie trained over 100 national champions in a long and successful career in amateur boxing. His son, Kevin, also boxed for West Ham, winning the national schoolboys title in 1971.
Jackie & Di Bowers always supported the club, whilst Kevin, Martin & Tony Bowers continue to support the club to this day. The whole Bowers family have contributed to West Ham's success over a long period.
Mark Kaylor, an East London boxer, achieved remarkable success during his amateur and professional boxing career. Kaylor won the NABC (National Association of Boys Clubs) in 1979 and the senior title in 1980. He also won the British Amateur Boxing Association Championships and represented his country at the European Junior Championships in Rimini, Italy. In 1980, Kaylor became the club's second Olympian when he represented Great Britain at the Moscow Olympics, although he lost in the quarterfinals on a split decision. Kaylor went on to become a British and Commonwealth middleweight champion in the professional ranks, and his fame and success inspired many young boxers such as club chairman Dean Hollington, Jason & Roy Rowland, Mark Tibbs, Steve Roberts, and Bradley Stone, among others. They all appeared in Ron Peck's acclaimed film "Real Money" and were trained by fellow West Ham champion Jimmy Tibbs.
In 1985, Nigel Benn joined the West Ham gym to spar with his friends Tony Velinor and Roy Andre. He was soon asked to represent the club at club shows, and in 1986, Benn won the National ABA senior title for the club. Nigel’s bout with Rod Douglas was a standout moment on the way to winning the title. Benn went on to become a world champion in the pro ranks, and his formidable punching power and aggressive fighting style earned him the nickname "The Dark Destroyer." Benn retired with an 83.3% knockout-to-win ratio.
His best-known fights include the successful world middleweight title defence against Iran Barkley in 1989, two all-British world title contests against Chris Eubank, and the successful defence of his world super-middleweight title against Gerald McClellan in 1995.
Stevie Roberts, another West Ham boxer, won the national schoolboys title three times in a row in 1987, 1988, and 1989. He also won the NABC in 1989 and 1991.
Sammy Tokeley, another talented boxer, won the national Schoolboys in 1985 and 1986, the junior title in 1985/6, and the NABC in 1985. All of his brothers also boxed for the club and between them all they won numerous titles.
Gary Delaney won the national Junior in 1987 and the NABC in 1986 and 1988, while his brother Mark Delaney won the national Schoolboys in 1988 and the NABC in 1990. Both went on to the professional ranks and challenged for the British title. Gary held the Commonwealth Light Heavyweight title in 1994.
In the 1990s, several boxers from the club achieved significant victories and titles. Kevin Lear won the national Schoolboys (1992/3), Junior (1992), and NABC (1993 & 1994) titles before turning professional and winning the WBU world title.
His brother Danny also won national Schoolboy (1989) and NABC (1990) titles for the club.
Michael Lomax, another member of the club during that era, won the Schoolboys (1994) and Juniors (1995) titles.
Guy Wild won the national Schoolboys (1989), Junior (1990 & 1991), and NABC (1993) titles for the club.
In the 2000s, the club continued to produce talented boxers who achieved great success. Kevin Mitchell won the National ABA Junior (2002) and Senior titles (2003) for the club while also representing his country on numerous occasions. After turning professional at the age of 18, he competed from 2003 to 2015, challenging twice for lightweight world championships.
He bid for the WBO title in 2012 and the WBC title in 2015.
At regional level, he held the Commonwealth super featherweight title from 2006 to 2008 and the British super featherweight title in 2008. Over the years Kevin has been a constant visitor to the gym, helping out with the coaching duties when time permits.
Kevin's brother Vinny also won the national ABA Schoolboys (2002/3) and NABC (2002/3) titles for the club, and Kevin's sons Connor and Vinny are currently boxing for the club.
Matthew Marsh won the national NABC (1999) and two senior ABA titles, one at flyweight in 2001 and the other at bantamweight in 2004. He represented England many times and won the four nations gold medal in 2001. Matthew turned professional in 2004 and competed until 2010, holding the British super bantamweight title in 2008 and challenging for the vacant Commonwealth super bantamweight title in 2010.
Dudley O'Shaughnessy, who started boxing at the age of 9 after being introduced to the sport by his father, a boxer/trainer, was another talented member of the club. He won the national junior (2007), NABC (2005), and senior title (2010) after being the runner-up in 2009. Despite his achievements, he was still overlooked by the British Olympic association. At the age of 19, he was scouted by a local modelling agency and then moved to NEXT Model Management. He then shifted his focus to modelling.
Brian O'Shaughnessy, a long-serving coach at the club, helped train many national champions and formed a formidable partnership.
In the 2010s, the West Ham Boxing Club continued to produce impressive boxers:
Luke Saunders won the national Schoolboys (2009), Junior (2010 & 2011), and NABC (2010 & 2011) titles for the club. He represented England multiple times and won the Four Nations gold in 2009 and 2010.
Viddal Riley started boxing at the age of six, under the guidance of his father Derrick Riley. He won the Schoolboys (2011), Junior (2013 & 2014), and NABC (2018) titles, and collected eight national championships for the club. Viddal won Four Nations gold (2010, 2013 & 2014), a European Junior Silver Medal in Russia, and became a 2014 Nanjing Youth Olympian for Team GB. Viddal's amateur record stands at 41-8 (19 KO's). He is now a professional boxer, with an undefeated career of 7 bouts and is co-trained by the club's Russell Gerrard. Viddal was promoted under Mayweather Promotions but is back home in the UK. He and his father Derrick are still involved with the club and always willing to help West Ham.
Patrick Connors won the national ABA juniors (2017 & 2018) and NABC (2016) titles. He represented England and won the Four Nations gold medal in 2017. His brothers Anthony, Johnny & Miley also box for the club. Anthony has won the Schoolboys (2019), Juniors in 2021 and has represented England in the European Championship, winning a gold medal.
Frank Woods won the national ABA juniors (2019), NABC (2019), and Youths (2021 & 2022) titles. He has represented England on numerous occasions, winning gold in the Four Nations in 2022. Frank is set to compete in the World Championship in 2023.
