Amir Khan (boxer)

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Amir Khan
Statistics
Real name	Amir Khan
Nickname	The Pride of Bolton
Weight	Lightweight / Light-welterweight
Nationality	United Kingdom
Birth date	December 8, 1986
Birth place	Bolton, Greater Manchester, England
Style	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	11
Wins	11
Wins by KO	8
Losses	0
Draws	0
No contests	0

Amir Khan (born December 8, 1986) is a British boxer from Bolton, Greater Manchester, England. He is the IBF inter-continental light welterweight champion and currently ranked #14 in the WBO world lightweight rankings.^[1]

He went to Devonshire Road Primary School, Smithills High School and Bolton Community College in Bolton. He was a hyperactive child and "a born fighter", according to his father, who encouraged him to take up boxing. His hero is Muhammad Ali.

Khan is a Raja of the Janjua Rajput clan of Pakistan, which has a long and well documented history of warrior kings and a strong martial reputation. He often uses his position as a well-known British Muslim to encourage better relations between British Muslims and the wider community, particularly in his home town of Bolton. He is the younger cousin of cricketer Sajid Mahmood.^{[citation needed]}

Contents 1 Amateur 2 Professional 3 Record 3.1 Amateur 3.2 Professional 4 Personal life 5 References 6 External links

[edit] Amateur

Khan rose to fame as Britain's sole representative in boxing at the 2004 Athens Olympics, winning a silver medal at the age of 17 in the lightweight boxing category. He was Britain's youngest Olympic boxer since Colin Jones in 1976. He lost in the final to Mario Kindelan, the Cuban who had also beaten him several months earlier in the pre-Olympic match ups in Greece. In 2005 he avenged the two losses by defeating a by-then 34 year old Kindelan in his final amateur fight. This fight was also notable for being the first boxing match ITV had chosen to show live in a decade.

[edit] Professional

Despite declaring after the 2004 Olympics that he would pursue a Gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Khan turned professional in 2005, signing with England's leading boxing promoter, Frank Warren. This was fuelled by a row with the English Amateur Boxing Association over the ticketing allocation for his family and friends at the English ABA Finals.

He has won his first eleven professional fights, drawing good reviews in the tabloid press however boxing fans have criticised Khan for repeatedly fighting journeymen from lower weight divisions many with as few as zero knockouts.

Khan fought for the lowly regarded IBF Inter-continental title against French fighter Rachid Drilzane on December 9, 2006, winning a 10 round decision despite the fact titles are usually contested over 12 rounds. Khan experienced the first knockdown of his career, he claimed he got his foot caught in the rope and touched down with his glove, giving the referee no choice but to award his opponent the knock-down. ^[1] Drilzane had never scored a knockout in his 13 fight career.

Khan has announced his intention to be a World Champion by the time he is 21, by the end of 2007 - comments which have prompted reactions from boxing fans directed towards his promoter to increase the level of his opposition.^{[citation needed]} Khan's life and career to date have already been documented in a book titled Amir Khan: a Boy from Bolton (ISBN 0747587604) and he has even released a DVD of his first nine fights. Also he has been known for reading his prayer befor fighting in the ring

[edit] Record

Olympic medal record
Boxing
Silver	2004 Athens	Lightweight

[edit] Amateur

• 2003 - Won a gold medal at the AAU Junior Olympics.
• 2004 - Won a gold medal at the European Student Championships and the World Junior Championships.
• 2004 - Won the Strandja Cup to qualify for the Olympics in Athens
• 2004 - Won a silver medal at the Olympics, beating Marios Kaperonis, Dimitar Stilianov, Jong Sub Baik and Serik Yeleuov. He lost to Mario Kindelan in the final.
• 2005 - Beat Craig Watson on points in the ABA Championships.
• 2005 - Won the last match of his amateur career beating Mario Kindelan 19-13 in Bolton.

[edit] Professional

• July 16, 2005 - Won first professional fight by TKO in the 1st round beating David Bailey.
• September 10, 2005 - Beat Baz Carey on points after a full four rounds at the International Arena, Cardiff.
• November 5, 2005 - Defeated Steve Gethin by TKO in the third round at Braehead Arena, Glasgow.
• December 10, 2005 - Beat Daniel Thorpe in the second round by TKO at the ExCeL Exhibition Centre, London.
• January 28, 2006 - Beat Vitali Martynov of Belarus in the first round by TKO at the Nottingham Arena, Nottingham.
• February 25, 2006 - Beat "Action" Jackson Williams of Norwich in the third round by TKO at the ExCel Exhibition Centre, London.
• May 20, 2006 - Beat Laszlo Komjathi of Hungary on points at the King's Hall, Belfast.
• July 8, 2006 - Beat Colin Bain of Scotland in the second round by referee's decision at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff.
• September 2, 2006 - Beat Ryan Barrett in the first round by TKO, after just 1 minute and 52 seconds.
• December 9, 2006 - Beat Rachid Drilzane of France by unanimous points decision (99-91 in ten rounds) for the IBF inter-continental light welterweight title.
• February 17, 2007 - Beat Mohammed Medjadi of France at Wembley Arena, London by TKO in the first round in 43 seconds.
• April 7, 2007 - Steffy Bull at the Millenium Stadium

[edit] Personal life

• He is an avid supporter of his local football club, Bolton Wanderers, and often uses the club's training facilities at the Reebok Stadium.^{[citation needed]}

• He is a first cousin of the England cricketer Sajid Mahmood. ^[2]

• He has performed an Umrah in 2006, he left England for Saudi Arabia on September 5 and returned on September 16.^{[citation needed]}

• Is heavily involved in the No Messin' camapaign.^{[citation needed]} a muslim man of belief

• He enjoys playing sports such as soccer and cricket.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] References

1. ^ David Magilton. Amir gets world ranking. The Bolton News.
2. ^ Mum's curries keep us at home, sport.guardian.co.uk, 30 July, 2006.

[edit] External links

• Amir Khan's official website
• BoxRec profile (BoxRec)
• Amir Khan's official fansite
• Amir Khan Boxing Equipment from RBK