Freddie Welsh

Freddie Welsh
Born	Frederick Hall Thomas March 5, 1886 Pontypridd, Wales
Nationality	British
Other names	The Welsh Wizard
Statistics
Weight(s)	Lightweight
Boxing record
Total fights	166
Wins	78
Wins by KO	32
Losses	5
Draws	7
No contests	81

Freddie Welsh (March 5, 1886 - July 29, 1927) was a boxing champion.

Birth and early career

Born in Pontypridd, Wales, and christened Frederick Hall Thomas, he was nicknamed the "Welsh Wizard" (an epithet shared by his contemporary, David Lloyd George).

The son of a successful businessman, Freddie suffered frequent illnesses as a child and was sent to California for his health. Here he took up boxing as a result of a suggestion from his physical fitness instructor. He became so good at the sport that he decided to make a living out of it and he turned professional in 1905. He took the name Freddie Welsh to prevent his mother from learning of his new career. The surname 'Welsh' was taken in honour of his nationality.

Championship years and WWI

In 1909, Welsh was awarded the first Lonsdale Belt, in recognition of his winning the European lightweight title. In 1914, he won the World Lightweight title on a points decision against Ritchie in London.

During the First World War Freddie served as a lieutenant and helped disabled veterans at the Walter Reed Hospital. He was discharged a captain and returned to the ring in December, 1920.

Retirement

He retired from boxing after a defeat by Archie Walker in 1922, but retired as a wealthy man. He bought a health farm and a gymnasium but fell on hard times and died penniless in New York.

Freddie Welsh was inducted into the 'Ring Boxing Hall of Fame' in 1960 and the 'International Boxing Hall of Fame' in 1997.

Record

During the time Welsh boxed, scoring resulted in a large number of no-decision fights. However, newspapers commonly reported a winner in the case of no-decision bouts. With that adjustment, Welsh's final record would be 110-25-15 with 32 KO's and 16 no-decisions.

External links

• Record
• BBC sport article about the life and career of Freddie Welsh