BOXING ROUNDUP : Amateur Collapses, Dies While Running

An 18-year-old boxer from Louisiana scheduled to particpate in the U.S. Amateur Championships in Colorado Springs, Colo., collapsed and died while running Sunday.

Dr. Deborah Waters, chief medical officer for the U.S. Olympic Committee, told the Colorado Springs Gazette-Telegraph that the Louisiana boxer died of cardiac arrest. She said an autopsy might determine whether an undetected heart defect could have contributed to the death.

The boxer, a light welterweight, had arrived in Colorado Springs Saturday for the 1990 national championships.

He had been running with fellow Louisiana boxer Kenneth Pratt when he collapsed. He was taken to St. Francis Hospital where he was pronounced dead an hour later.

“We had jogged a couple of laps, and he said he was feeling some chest pains,” Pratt said. “He said it felt like heartburn. We ran a couple more laps and he collapsed.”

Pratt said the pace was slow. “We were just trying to get used to the altitude.”

Pratt said they hadn’t sparred on Sunday.

“Until the results of the autopsy are in, it’s virtually impossible to say what caused it,” said Dr. Robert Voy, chairman of the Sports Medical Committee for the USA-ABF. “Sudden death is not rare among athletes. Everything was done quickly and properly.

“He received CPR at the track and at the hospital, to no avail.”

The championships begin tonight and end Saturday night.

Virgil Hill retained his World Boxing Assn. light-heavyweight title with a unanimous 12-round decision over David Vedder at Bismarck, N.D.

It was Hill’s eighth defense of the title he won in 1987 from Lesle Stewart.

Neither fighter went down as Hill (27-0) racked up points with his quick jab and counter-punching left hook against Vedder (22-9-3) before 8,000 at the Bismarck Civic Center.

In the sixth round, Hill began moving well to his left, scoring with jabs and lefts to the challenger’s head and dodging most of Vedder’s punches.

From then on, the 26-year-old champion controlled the fight, shaking the challenger in the 11th round with left hooks and backing Vedder against the ropes twice.

Vedder survived but couldn’t keep up with the quicker Hill.

On the undercard, U.S Olympian Kelcie Banks won his seventh consecutive professional bout after losing his pro debut. Banks knocked down Arturo Lozano three times in the opening round and the fight was stopped at 2:44.