By Ken Hissner: Even though some amateurs reach stardom, they flop as professionals. Then there are top amateurs who never turn professional, so you never know how they would do.
I could list a bunch of Cuban boxers and several Russian boxers who were never allowed to turn professional, and I will list a couple of them within this article.
At the top of the list be three-time Olympic Heavyweight Gold Medalists, both from Cuba Teofilo Stevenson and Felix Savon. Stevenson, 107-12-3 (48), only stopped once. He won Olympic Gold in 1972 Munich stopping Duane Bobick of USA, and was awarded the most outstanding boxer of the tournament, the Val Barker Trophy.
In 1976 Montreal, he stopped future world champion John Tate for a second Gold medal. In 1980 Moscow, he won Gold again as the USA team didn’t participate. In 1984 the Cuban and Russian teams didn’t participate due to the USA boycott in 1980, or Stevenson would have fought for a fourth title. He also won three world titles in 1974, 1978 defeating future world champ Tony Tubbs of the USA and in 1986. He won two Pan American titles in 1975, defeating future world champ Michael Dokes of the USA.
Felix Savon was 267-7 (52) won Olympic Gold in 1992 Barcelona, 1996 Atlanta, and 2000 Guantanamo, Cuba, defeating future world pro champ Sultan Ibragimov of Russia. He won Gold at the World Games in 1986, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1995, and 1997.
Russia’s Olympic Gold Medalist at 2004 Athens Gaydarbek Gaydarbekov defeated future world pro champ Gennady Golovkin in the finals. Other wins were over future world pro champions Jeff Lacy, Zsolt Erdei, Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam, and Jermain Taylor. He was the 2000 Olympic Silver Medalist.
Heavyweight Igor Vysotsky, 161-24, twice defeated Teofilo Stevenson; the second fight stopped him, the only opponent to ever do that. Prior to the 1976 Olympics, he was cut in sparring, which kept him from going. He stopped future world pro champ Tony Tubbs and lost a decision to future world champ Greg Page. In 1978 he was in an exhibition with Muhammad Ali.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2yq8EVGX2M
One of the first that came to mind for me was having done an article on him was Jesse Valdez, 45-8 (5), out of Houston, Texas, representing the Air Force. He won the National AAU title as a 16-year-old in 1964 and National Golden Glove titles in 1967 and 1972. In 1972 Munich Olympics Bronze Medalist. He twice defeated future world pro champ Eddie Mustafa Muhammad. He was known for being the first boxer to bow to the four corners of the ring, per what “Sugar” Ray Leonard once told me.
1976 Olympic Bronze Medalist Charles Mooney, 20-5 (1), of Washington, DC, was the only member of the team that didn’t turn pro. He made a career of it in the US Army. In the Olympics, he won five matches, including defeating the Russian before losing.