Italian boxing legend Nino Benvenuti of Isola d’Istria, Italy, passed away on Tuesday at the age of 87 according to Reuters. Benvenuti won a gold medal for Italy in the welterweight division at the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome. He was also the undisputed middleweight champion twice (in 1967, and again from 1968 to 1970), and the super welterweight champion (from 1965 to 1966).
Look back at Olympic Gold
Benvenuti was part of an incredible era of Italian boxing, as Italy won three gold medals in the sport at the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome. In the welterweight division, Benvenuti won the gold medal, Yuri Radonyak of the Soviet Union won the silver medal, and Jimmy Lloyd of Great Britain and Leszek Drogosz of Poland each won the bronze medal.
What was dominant about Benvenuti throughout the Olympic men’s welterweight tournament was the fact he only gave up one point in five matches. After getting a first round bye, he beat Jean Josselin of France 5-0 in the second round, Kim Gi-su of South Korea 5-0 in the third round, Shishman Mitsev of Bulgaria 5-0 in the quarterfinals, and Lloyd 5-0 in the semifinals. The other two Italian boxers to win Olympic gold in 1960 in Rome were Francesco Musso of Acquit Terme in thee featherweight division, and Francesco de Piccoli of Campalto in the heavyweight division.
Professional Career
Benvenuti fought 90 times professionally and had a record of 82 wins, seven losses and one draw. A total of 35 wins were by a knockout. From June 18, 1965 to June 25, 1966, Benvenuti had the WBA and WBC Undisputed Super Welterweight title. He claimed the title by knocking out fellow Italian Alessandro Mazzinghi of Pontedera. Benvenuti then won eight more matches over the next year before finally losing to Ki-Soo Kim of South Korea.
Then from April 17, 1967 to September 29, 1967 and again from March 4, 1968 to November 7, 1970, Benvenuti was the WBA, WBC and The Ring Middleweight champion. In that time, Benvenuti had a strong rivalry with American Emile Griffith. Benvenuti won two of three matches in New York City (two matches at Madison Square Garden and one at Shea Stadium) in 1967 and 1968.
