Deaths of Two Boxers Mar U.S. Event

The deaths of two boxers while training clouded Monday’s opening of the U.S. Amateur Boxing Championships.

Sean Lee, 18, of Baton Rouge, La., suffered a heart attack while running Sunday. Three days earlier, Tyrone Smith of the U.S. Navy suffered a fatal fall from a ring apron as he was having his gloves removed.

“To have had two such freakish incidents happen to two boxers both in good condition is as unbelievable as it is tragic,” said Dr. Robert Voy, chairman of the sports medicine committee of the USA-Amateur Boxing Association.

The winners and runners-up advance to the box-offs for the Goodwill Games at Seattle July 28-Aug. 5. The box-offs will be held in June at a site to be determined. The third-place finishers automatically qualify for the U.S. Olympic Festival July 7-10 at Minneapolis.