Mate Parlov

Mate Parlov
Parlov in 1972
Statistics
Real name	Mate Parlov
Rated at	light heavyweight, cruiserweight
Height
Nationality	Croat
Born	(1948-11-16)16 November 1948 Split, SFR Yugoslavia
Died	Pula, Croatia
Stance	Southpaw
Boxing record
Total fights	29
Wins	24
Wins by KO	12
Losses	3
Draws	2
No contests	0
Medal record Representing Yugoslavia Olympic Games 1972 Munich -81 kg World Amateur Championships 1974 Havana -81 kg European Amateur Championships 1969 Bucharest -75 kg 1971 Madrid -81 kg 1973 Belgrade -81 kg

Mate Parlov (16 November 1948 – 29 July 2008) was a Yugoslav boxer of Croatian origin, and Olympic gold medalist who was European and World Champion as amateur and as professional. Parlov is the greatest Croatian boxer of all time, and the Croatian sportsman of the 20th century.

Background

Mate Parlov was born in Split, but his origins were from the village of Ričice near the town of Imotski.

Amateur

In his amateur career he participated in 310 matches and lost 13. He was an eight-time champion of Yugoslavia in the light heavyweight category (1967–1974), five-time champion of the Balkans (1970–1974), two-time champion of Europe (1971 in Madrid, and 1973 in Belgrade) and the world champion at the inaugural 1974 World Championships in Havana, Cuba. He won the Golden Glove award twice, in 1967 and 1969. He participated in the Munich 1972 Summer Olympics and won the gold medal in the light heavyweight division.

Professional career

Parlov took the opportunity to turn professional and won twelve of his first thirteen fights before successfully challenging for the European light-heavyweight title. In 1976 he faced the future world champion Matthew Saad Muhammad. In their first fight in Milan, which was arranged for eight rounds, he was defeated following the referee's decision. In a rematch with Muhammad, they struggled to a ten-round draw. After defending the European title three times, he met Miguel Angel Cuello for the WBC world light-heavyweight title in January 1978. The two men had been scheduled to meet in the quarter-finals at the Munich Olympics, but Cuello withdrew due to an injury. Parlov knocked out the Cuello in the ninth round in Milan to become the first professional world champion from a communist country. Parlov lost the title on his second defense and would later challenge for the World cruiser-weight title without success.

Retirement

In retirement Parlov ran his coffee bar in Pula. He returned to boxing before the 1984 Olympics, where he was the Yugoslav boxing coach. At those Olympics, Yugoslav boxers achieved their best results ever: one gold, one silver and two bronzes. He later moved to Fažana near Pula, away from boxing and the public. In March 2008, he was diagnosed with a lung cancer, and died four months later.

Honors and awards

• Golden Gloves: 1967, 1969
• Croatian Sportsman of the Year: 1971, 1972, 1973
• Yugoslavian Sportsman of the Year: 1971, 1972, 1974
• Golden Badge award for best athlete of Yugoslavia: 1972, 1974
• Croatian Sportsman of the 20th century
• Lifetime Honorary President of Croatian Boxing Federation
• WBC Honorary Champion: 2006
• Croatian Walk of Fame: 2008
• Mate Parlov Sport Centre

Amateur highlights

• Record: 310–13
• Eight-time champion of Yugoslavia
• Five-time champion of the Balkans

1969 – European Championships: Bucharest, Romania: Silver Medal (Middleweight)

• • Defeated Ewald Jarmer (West Germany) PTS
  • Defeated Janusz Gortat (Poland) PTS
  • Defeated Reima Virtanen (Finland) PTS
  • Lost to Vladimir Tarassenko (Soviet Union) PTS
• Represented Yugoslavia as a Middleweight at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, Mexico.
  • Defeated Lahcen Ahidous (Mauritania) PTS
  • Defeated Jan van Ispelen (Netherlands) PTS
  • Lost to Chris Finnegan (England) PTS (Finnegan would win the gold medal)
• 1971 – European Championships: Madrid, Spain: Gold Medal (Light Heavyweight)
  • Defeated Anthony Roberts (Wales) PTS
  • Defeated Vladimir Metelev (Soviet Union) TKO 2
  • Defeated Janusz Gortat (Poland) PTS
  • Defeated Horst Stump (Romania) PTS
  • Defeated Ottomar Sachse (East Germany) PTS
• Won the Light Heavyweight Gold medal for Yugoslavia at the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Germany.
  • Defeated Nouredine Aman Hassan (Chad) KO 2
  • Defeated Imre Toth (Hungary) KO 2
  • Defeated Miguel Angel Cuello (Argentina) Forfeit
  • Defeated Janusz Gortat (Poland) PTS
  • Defeated Gilberto Carrillo (Cuba) TKO 2
• 1973 – European Championships: Belgrade, Yugoslavia: Gold Medal (Light Heavyweight)
  • Defeated Michael Imrie (Scotland) TKO 1
  • Defeated William Knight (England) TKO 3
  • Defeated Oleg Karatayev (Soviet Union) TKO 2
  • Defeated Janusz Gortat (Poland) PTS
• 1974 – World Championships, Havanna, Cuba: Gold Medal (Light Heavyweight)
  • Defeated Constantin Dafinoiu (Romania) PTS
  • Defeated Gilberto Carrillo (Cuba) PTS
  • Defeated Ottomar Sachse (East Germany) PTS
  • Defeated Oleg Karatayev (Poland) TKO 2

Professional boxing record

24 Wins (12 knockouts, 12 decisions), 3 Losses (1 knockout, 2 decisions), 2 Draws
Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round	Date	Location	Notes
Loss	24–3–2	Marvin Camel	UD	15	31 March 1980	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States	For inaugural WBC World Cruiserweight title.
Draw	24–2–2	Marvin Camel	PTS	15	8 December 1979	Split, Yugoslavia	For inaugural WBC World Cruiserweight title.
Win	24–2–1	Tony Mundine	PTS	12	26 September 1979	Gorizia, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy	WBC World Cruiserweight title eliminator.
Win	23–2–1	Joe Maye	KO	5	28 July 1979	Munich, Bayern, West Germany
Loss	22–2–1	Marvin Johnson	TKO	10	2 December 1978	Marsala, Sicilia, Italy	Lost WBC World Light Heavyweight title.
Win	22–1–1	John Conteh	SD	15	17 June 1978	Belgrade, Yugoslavia	Retained WBC World Light Heavyweight title.
Win	21–1–1	Tony Greene	TKO	6	28 April 1978	Sarajevo, Yugoslavia
Win	20–1–1	Miguel Angel Cuello	KO	9	7 January 1978	Milan, Lombardia, Italy	Won WBC World Light Heavyweight title.
Win	19–1–1	Leo Kakolewicz	TKO	6	21 August 1977	Rijeka, Yugoslavia
Win	18–1–1	Harald Skog	UD	15	9 July 1977	Basel, Switzerland	Retained EBU Light Heavyweight title.
Win	17–1–1	Francois Fiol	PTS	15	5 April 1977	Morges, Switzerland	Retained EBU Light Heavyweight title.
Win	16–1–1	Christian Poncelet	PTS	10	5 March 1977	Velenje, Yugoslavia
Draw	15–1–1	Matthew Saad Muhammad	PTS	10	3 December 1976	Trieste, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy
Win	15–1	Aldo Traversaro	PTS	15	15 October 1976	Milan, Lombardia, Italy	Retained EBU Light Heavyweight title.
Win	14–1	Al Bolden	KO	9	11 September 1976	Zagreb, Yugoslavia
Win	13–1	Domenico Adinolfi	TKO	11	10 July 1976	Belgrade, Yugoslavia	Won EBU Light Heavyweight title.
Loss	12–1	Matthew Saad Muhammad	PTS	8	21 May 1976	Milan, Lombardia, Italy
Win	12–0	Maile Haumona	PTS	10	20 March 1976	Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Win	11–0	Sentiki Qata	PTS	10	6 March 1976	Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Win	10–0	Macka Foley	TKO	2	6 February 1976	Trieste, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy
Win	9–0	Onelio Grando	PTS	8	26 December 1975	Reggio Emilia, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
Win	8–0	Billy Freeman	PTS	10	22 November 1975	Skopje, Yugoslavia
Win	7–0	Karl Zurheide	KO	1	30 October 1975	Milan, Lombardia, Italy
Win	6–0	Johnny Griffin	TKO	5	6 October 1975	Zagreb, Yugoslavia
Win	5–0	Jose Evaristo Gomez	PTS	8	13 September 1975	Pula, Yugoslavia
Win	4–0	Jose Galvez Vasquez	PTS	8	22 August 1975	Split, Yugoslavia
Win	3–0	Horst Lang	KO	1	12 July 1975	Arenzano, Liguria, Italy
Win	2–0	Robert Amory	TKO	5	20 June 1975	Milan, Lombardia, Italy
Win	1-o	Dante Lazzari	KO	1	31 May 1975	Opatija, Yugoslavia

External links

• Professional boxing record for Mate Parlov from BoxRec
• Olympiad Medal Results for 1972: Boxing 75-81kg (light-heavyweight) Men

Sporting positions
Preceded by Miguel Angel Cuello	WBC Light Heavyweight Champion 7 January 1978 – 2 December 1978	Succeeded by Marvin Johnson
Awards and achievements
Preceded by Miroslav Cerar Marijan Beneš	Yugoslav Sportsman of the Year 1971, 1972 1974	Succeeded by Marijan Beneš Nenad Stekić
Preceded by Sreten Damjanović Marijan Beneš	The Best Athlete of Yugoslavia 1972 1974	Succeeded by Marijan Beneš Nenad Stekić