Nigerian boxer dies after collapsing during light heavyweight fight

A Nigerian boxer died Saturday after collapsing during a light heavyweight fight in Ghana, officials announced this week.

Gabriel Oluwasegun Olanrewaju was pronounced dead at Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra, the capital, following the professional fight against Ghanaian boxer Jon Mbanugu in which Oluwasegun lost consciousness, the Ghana Boxing Authority said in a statement. 

Oluwasegun appeared to dominate his opponent until the third round, when he collapsed despite not being hit, the authority said. Paramedics attempted to resuscitate the boxer before taking him to the hospital, and he was pronounced dead about 30 minutes later. 

The boxing authority said it “is seriously mourning the demise of a potential world beater who was dictating a beautiful fight and all of a sudden … fell into what has been described as an induced coma even though an official cause of death is yet to be made available after autopsy.”

Oluwasegun had been declared “medically fit” for the fight by the Nigeria Boxing Board Control before the Ghana Boxing Authority cleared him to participate, according to the Ghanaian organization. 

The boxer’s official record prior to Saturday included 23 fights, with 13 victories and eight defeats. He was a former national and West African champion in his weight class, BBC Sport reported.

Remi Aboderin, the general secretary of the Nigeria Boxing Board Control, described Oluwasegun as “fearless” and a “ring warrior” in comments to BBC Sport Africa. 

“We are really devastated,” Aboderin said. “[This] is not something we envisaged. We will live up to our responsibility and make sure that we stand [by] the family.”

At least six other boxers have died from injuries they suffered in the ring since February 2024. In February, Irish boxer John Cooney died in intensive care one week after a super featherweight fight in Belfast, which left him with an intracranial hemorrhage. And, in Novemer, Fiji boxer Ubayd Haider died after collapsing in a super featherweight fight in New Zealand.