Raymond "Sixteen" Thompson, Belizean Boxer
The memories of this awesome Belizean boxer continues to haunt me whenever Belizeans speak about boxing. We know that Lugwig Lightburn was the greatest, and David Dakers was back to back national boxing champ of Belize, and others rose to high acclaim in the Belizean boxing world, but Sixteen, as he is called by most Belizeans, dazzled the Belizean boxing world, and perhaps sent shock waves to the Mexican fighters all the way down to Campeche, Mexico.
My close up view of him at Havana Gym under the training brilliance of Eustace Vernon, and why he was so feared by many boxers in Belize, was because of how good he was, and the skill and hard work he put into his training. But Thompson was fearless, and would step away from no challenge. He was second to none, and though he fought at a lighter weight than many of the other big boxing champions in Belize in the 1970's, Sixteen flew high like he was Belize's only national boxing champion.
His style, speed, and punching power was parallel to many boxers across the world and the in the United States. He was a combination of everything you can think about in the boxing world at that time. He was a fighting machine.
Photograph courtesy Belize Legends
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