Harry Simon (born 21 October 1971) is a Namibian former professional boxer. He is a two-weight world champion, having held the WBO junior middleweight title from 1998 to 2001, and the WBO middleweight title in 2002.
Harry Simon | |||||||||||||||
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| Born | 21 October 1971 Walvis Bay, Namibia | ||||||||||||||
| Other names |
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| Statistics | |||||||||||||||
| Weight(s) | |||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) | ||||||||||||||
| Reach | 70 in (178 cm) | ||||||||||||||
| Stance | Orthodox | ||||||||||||||
| Boxing record | |||||||||||||||
| Total fights | 31 | ||||||||||||||
| Wins | 31 | ||||||||||||||
| Wins by KO | 23 | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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In 2002, Simon was involved in a serious car crash. He was found guilty of "culpable homicide" and sentenced to jail in 2007. Simon was released in 2009. He lost his world middleweight title owing to injuries sustained from the car accident, being stripped of the belt for failure to defend it.
In 2013 Simon won the vacant IBF International Light Heavyweight title against Geard Ajetović, and defended it against him again in 2014.
Amateur highlights
As an amateur Simon represented Namibia as a welterweight at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain, and had an overall amateur record of 121–9. His result was:
- Lost to Aníbal Acevedo (Puerto Rico) 11–13
Professional career
Simon turned pro in 1994 and won the WBO junior middleweight title in 1998 by defeating Winky Wright by controversial decision. The bout had initially been ruled a draw, but then a "scoring error" favoring Simon was discovered. He defended the title four times against Kevin Lueshing, Enrique Areco, Rodney Jones and Wayne Alexander. He later captured the WBO middleweight title against Sweden's Armand Krajnc in a unanimous 12-round decision. In 2002, Simon was involved in a serious car accident, sustaining injuries that prevented his defending his title; because of this he was stripped of the belt.[1]
Simon returned to boxing in March 2007, winning an eight round decision over Stephen Nzuemb, in Namibia. He won a fight against Tanzanian Rashid Mutumla by knockout on 2 December 2010. Following his release from jail in 2009, Simon launched a comeback, recording several wins over journeyman opposition.
On 24 November 2018 Simon fought together with his son, Harry Simon Jr. They both won their fights, making it a first in Namibia for father and son to appear together, and to both win.[2]
Professional boxing record
| 31 fights | 31 wins | 0 losses |
|---|---|---|
| By knockout | 23 | 0 |
| By decision | 8 | 0 |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 | Win | 31–0 | Kaminjah Ramadhan | TKO | 2 (8) | Nov 24, 2018 | Ramatex Factory, Windhoek, Namibia | |
| 30 | Win | 30–0 | Japhet Kaseba | TKO | 2 (8) | Mar 26, 2016 | Helao Nafidi Business Expo Hall, Helao Nafidi, Namibia | |
| 29 | Win | 29–0 | Geard Ajetović | UD | 12 | Sep 28, 2013 | Ramatex Factory, Windhoek, Namibia | Won vacant IBF International light heavyweight title |
| 28 | Win | 28–0 | Zoltan Kiss, Jr. | TKO | 2 (8) 2:33 | Jun 29, 2013 | Windhoek Country Club Resort, Windhoek, Namibia | |
| 27 | Win | 27–0 | Ruben Groenewald | TKO | 1 (12) 1:23 | Jun 23, 2012 | SKW Hall, Windhoek, Namibia | |
| 26 | Win | 26–0 | Rashid Matumla | KO | 1 (10) 1:43 | Dec 4, 2010 | OK Parking Lot, Windhoek, Namibia | |
| 25 | Win | 25–0 | Daniel Wanyonyi | TKO | 5 (6) | Feb 20, 2010 | Simmers Restaurant, Nairobi, Kenya | |
| 24 | Win | 24–0 | Stephen Nzuemba | UD | 12 | Mar 3, 2007 | Sam Nujoma Stadium, Windhoek, Namibia | |
| 23 | Win | 23–0 | Armand Krajnc | UD | 12 | Apr 6, 2002 | Circus Building, Copenhagen, Denmark | Won WBO middleweight title |
| 22 | Win | 22–0 | Hacine Cherifi | UD | 12 | Jul 21, 2001 | Coliseo Rubén Rodríguez, Bayamón, Puerto Rico | Won WBO interim middleweight title |
| 21 | Win | 21–0 | Wayne Alexander | TKO | 5 (12) 2:43 | Feb 10, 2001 | Kingsway Leisure Centre, Widnes, England | Retained WBO junior middleweight title |
| 20 | Win | 20–0 | Rodney Jones | MD | 12 | Sep 23, 2000 | Casino Rama, Rama, Ontario, Canada | Retained WBO junior middleweight title |
| 19 | Win | 19–0 | Enrique Areco | TKO | 10 (12) | Feb 19, 2000 | Goresbrook Leisure Centre, London, England | Retained WBO junior middleweight title |
| 18 | Win | 18–0 | Kevin Lueshing | TKO | 3 (12) 2:08 | May 1, 1999 | Crystal Palace National Sports Centre, London, England | Retained WBO junior middleweight title |
| 17 | Win | 17–0 | Winky Wright | MD | 12 | Aug 22, 1998 | Carousel Casino, Hammanskraal, South Africa | Won WBO junior middleweight title |
| 16 | Win | 16–0 | Kasi Kaihau | KO | 4 (10) 1:12 | Dec 22, 1997 | Ponds Forge, Sheffield, England | |
| 15 | Win | 15–0 | George Richards | KO | 5 (8) 2:37 | Jul 19, 1997 | Wembley Arena, London, England | |
| 14 | Win | 14–0 | Nick Odore | KO | 5 (6) 2:37 | May 3, 1997 | NYNEX Arena, Manchester, England | |
| 13 | Win | 13–0 | John Bosco | KO | 2 (8) 1:48 | Feb 8, 1997 | London Arena, London, England | |
| 12 | Win | 12–0 | Anthony Ivory | PTS | 6 | Aug 31, 1996 | Point Theatre, Dublin, Ireland | |
| 11 | Win | 11–0 | Del Bryan | TKO | 6 (10) | Jul 6, 1996 | NYNEX Arena, Manchester, England | |
| 10 | Win | 10–0 | Paul Wesley | RTD | 4 (8) 3:00 | Apr 13, 1996 | Wythenshawe Forum, Manchester, England | |
| 9 | Win | 9–0 | José María Cabral | KO | 6 (10) | Sep 23, 1995 | Vista University Indoor Centre, Bloemfontein, South Africa | |
| 8 | Win | 8–0 | Danny Chavez | PTS | 10 | Jul 8, 1995 | Wembley Indoor Arena, Johannesburg, South Africa | |
| 7 | Win | 7–0 | Ernest Goliath | TKO | 1 (8) | May 12, 1995 | Berea Park Arena, Pretoria, South Africa | |
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | Enuel Marshile | TKO | 5 (8) | Mar 15, 1995 | Morula Sun Casino, Mabopane, South Africa | |
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Paul Nhlumayo | TKO | 2 (6) | Dec 21, 1994 | DLI Hall, Durban, South Africa | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Thandekile Boyana | TKO | 4 | Nov 20, 1994 | Wembley Indoor Arena, Johannesburg, South Africa | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Petros Twala | TKO | 2 (4) | Mar 26, 1994 | Indoor Centre, Springs, South Africa | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Thabiso Dlamini | KO | 1 (4) | Mar 5, 1994 | Ringwise Boxing Academy, Johannesburg, South Africa | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Leon Van Rensburg | TKO | 1 (4) | Jan 26, 1994 | Indoor Centre, Springs, South Africa |
Outside the ring
Simon was involved in two serious car accidents resulting in fatalities. In the first accident in 2001, two people died outside Swakopmund in a hit-and-run accident. Simon's car's estimated speed was 230 kilometres per hour (140 mph). Some controversy developed around this accident, as blood samples disappeared, and originally Simon was reported to be driving. His driver later admitted to have steered the vehicle and was sentenced to 2 years in jail.[3]
The second accident, in late 2002, saw Simon seriously injured and eventually sent to jail.[4] Three Belgian tourists - two adults and a baby - died in the collision with Simon's Mercedes-Benz at Langstrand in November 2002. On 5 August 2005, Simon was given a two-year jail sentence, after he was found guilty of culpable homicide stemming from the November 2002 car accident, which resulted in the deaths of the three people.[5]
On 9 July 2007, Simon began serving his two-year prison sentence for culpable homicide after losing the appeal of his 2005 conviction. Simon did not call any witnesses or testify in his own behalf during the appeal proceedings, and his conviction and sentence were not overturned.[6] He was released in 2009. In 2020 he published a book, "Lifestyle and Treatments in Prison", detailing his experiences in jail.[7]
See also
References
External links
- Boxing record for Harry Simon from BoxRec (registration required)
- Harry Simon at Olympedia
