 Parlov in 1972 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nationality | Yugoslavian | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | Mate Parlov (1948-11-16)16 November 1948 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 29 July 2008(2008-07-29) (aged 59) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | light heavyweight,cruiserweight | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Boxing career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stance | Southpaw | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Boxing record | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total fights | 29 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wins | 24 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Win by KO | 12 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Losses | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Draws | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No contests | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Mate Parlov (16 November 1948 – 29 July 2008) was a Croatian-Yugoslavianboxer andOlympic gold medalist who was European and World Champion as an amateur and as a professional.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7] Parlov was voted theBest Balkan Athlete of the Year for 1974.[8]
Mate Parlov was born inSplit, the youngest of four children in aCroatian family originally fromImotski. In 1958, the family moved toPula.
In his amateur career he participated in 310 matches and lost 13.[9] He was 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 world champion at the inaugural1974 World Championships inHavana,Cuba. He won theGolden Glove award twice, in 1967 and 1969. He participated in theMunich 1972 Summer Olympics, winning the gold medal in the light heavyweight division.[10]
Parlov won twelve of his first thirteen fights as a professional boxer before successfully challenging for the European light-heavyweight title. In 1976, he faced the future world championMatthew Saad Muhammad. In their first fight in Milan, scheduled for eight rounds, he was defeated following the referee's decision. In a rematch, he and Muhammad struggled to a ten-round draw. After successfully defending the European title three times, he metMiguel Angel Cuello in Milan for theWBC world light-heavyweight title in January 1978. The two men had been scheduled to meet in the quarter-finals at the Munich Olympics, but the Argentine Cuello withdrew due to an injury. Parlov knocked out Cuello in the ninth round 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.
In retirement, Parlov ran a coffee bar in Pula. He returned to boxing as coach of the Yugoslavian Olympic team prior to the1984 Olympics,[10] when Yugoslav boxers achieved their best results ever: one gold, one silver and two bronzes. He later moved toFažana nearPula, away from boxing and the public. In March 2008, he was diagnosed withlung cancer, and died four months later.
Mate Parlov was married to Laura Parlov with whom he had two children, daughter Mira and son Matko. He was an economist by profession, and had one graduate exam left before gaining the title ofMaster of Economics.[11]
Silver at the 1969 European Championships: Bucharest, Romania (Middleweight):
Represented Yugoslavia at the 1968Olympics in Mexico City, Mexico (Middleweight):
Gold at the 1971 European Championships: Madrid, Spain (Light Heavyweight):
Gold at the 1972Olympics in Munich, Germany (Light Heavyweight):
Gold at the 1973 European Championships: Belgrade, Yugoslavia (Light Heavyweight):
Gold at the 1974 World Championships, Havanna, Cuba (Light Heavyweight):
| 29 fights | 24 wins | 3 losses |
|---|---|---|
| By knockout | 12 | 1 |
| By decision | 12 | 2 |
| Draws | 2 | |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 | Loss | 24–3–2 | Marvin Camel | UD | 15 | 31 March 1980 | Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. | For inauguralWBC WorldCruiserweight title. |
| 28 | Draw | 24–2–2 | Marvin Camel | PTS | 15 | 8 December 1979 | Sportski Centar Gripe, Split, Yugoslavia | For inauguralWBC WorldCruiserweight title. |
| 27 | Win | 24–2–1 | Tony Mundine | PTS | 12 | 26 September 1979 | Gorizia, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy | WBC WorldCruiserweight title eliminator. |
| 26 | Win | 23–2–1 | Joe Maye | KO | 5 | 28 July 1979 | Munich, Bavaria, West Germany | |
| 25 | Loss | 22–2–1 | Marvin Johnson | TKO | 10 | 2 December 1978 | Palazzo Dello Sport, Marsala, Sicily, Italy | LostWBC WorldLight Heavyweight title. |
| 24 | Win | 22–1–1 | John Conteh | SD | 15 | 17 June 1978 | Red Star Stadium, Belgrade, Yugoslavia | RetainedWBC WorldLight Heavyweight title. |
| 23 | Win | 21–1–1 | Tony Greene | TKO | 6 | 28 April 1978 | Sarajevo, Yugoslavia | |
| 22 | Win | 20–1–1 | Miguel Ángel Cuello | KO | 9 | 7 January 1978 | Palasport di San Siro, Milan, Lombardy, Italy | WonWBC WorldLight Heavyweight title. |
| 21 | Win | 19–1–1 | Leo Kakolewicz | TKO | 6 | 21 August 1977 | Rijeka, Yugoslavia | |
| 20 | Win | 18–1–1 | Harald Skog | UD | 15 | 9 July 1977 | Basel, Switzerland | RetainedEBULight Heavyweight title. |
| 19 | Win | 17–1–1 | Francois Fiol | PTS | 15 | 5 April 1977 | Morges, Switzerland | RetainedEBULight Heavyweight title. |
| 18 | Win | 16–1–1 | Christian Poncelet | PTS | 10 | 5 March 1977 | Velenje, Yugoslavia | |
| 17 | Draw | 15–1–1 | Matthew Saad Muhammad | PTS | 10 | 3 December 1976 | Trieste, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy | |
| 16 | Win | 15–1 | Aldo Traversaro | PTS | 15 | 15 October 1976 | Palasport di San Siro, Milan, Lombardy, Italy | RetainedEBULight Heavyweight title. |
| 15 | Win | 14–1 | Al Bolden | KO | 9 | 11 September 1976 | Zagreb, Yugoslavia | |
| 14 | Win | 13–1 | Domenico Adinolfi | TKO | 11 | 10 July 1976 | Belgrade, Yugoslavia | WonEBULight Heavyweight title. |
| 13 | Loss | 12–1 | Matthew Saad Muhammad | PTS | 8 | 21 May 1976 | Palasport di San Siro, Milan, Lombardy, Italy | |
| 12 | Win | 12–0 | Maile Haumona | PTS | 10 | 20 March 1976 | Windsor Regis Hotel, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia | |
| 11 | Win | 11–0 | Sentiki Qata | PTS | 10 | 6 March 1976 | Hordern Pavilion, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia | |
| 10 | Win | 10–0 | Macka Foley | TKO | 2 | 6 February 1976 | Trieste, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy | |
| 9 | Win | 9–0 | Onelio Grando | PTS | 8 | 26 December 1975 | Reggio Emilia, Emilia-Romagna, Italy | |
| 8 | Win | 8–0 | Billy Freeman | PTS | 10 | 22 November 1975 | Skopje, Yugoslavia | |
| 7 | Win | 7–0 | Karl Zurheide | KO | 1 | 30 October 1975 | PalaLido, Milan, Lombardy, Italy | |
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | Johnny Griffin | TKO | 5 | 6 October 1975 | Zagreb, Yugoslavia | |
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Jose Evaristo Gomez | PTS | 8 | 13 September 1975 | Pula, Yugoslavia | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Jose Galvez Vasquez | PTS | 8 | 22 August 1975 | Split, Yugoslavia | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Horst Lang | KO | 1 | 12 July 1975 | Arenzano, Liguria, Italy | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Robert Amory | TKO | 5 | 20 June 1975 | Milan, Lombardy, Italy | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Dante Lazzari | KO | 1 | 31 May 1975 | Opatija, Yugoslavia |
| Sporting positions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Regional boxing titles | ||||
| Preceded by Domenico Adinolfi | EBU light heavyweight champion 10 July 1976 – 1977 Vacated | Vacant Title next held by Aldo Traversaro | ||
| World boxing titles | ||||
| Preceded by | WBC light heavyweight champion 7 January 1978 – 2 December 1978 | Succeeded by | ||
| Awards and achievements | ||||
| Previous: Miroslav Cerar Marijan Beneš | Yugoslav Sportsman of the Year 1971 – 1972 1974 | Next: Marijan Beneš Nenad Stekić | ||
| Previous: Sreten Damjanović Marijan Beneš |  The Best Athlete of Yugoslavia1972 1974 | Next: Marijan Beneš Nenad Stekić | ||
| Light heavyweight status | ||||
| Preceded by | Latest born world champion to die July 29, 2008 – March 10, 2012 | Succeeded by | ||
1920–1936: 160–175 lb (72.6–79.4 kg) · 1948: 73–80 kg · 1952–2012: 75–81 kg · 2016–2020: 76–81 kg | |
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