Light-Middleweight (≤71 kilograms), Men

In 1964 Soviet boxing was reaching a peak and in the vanguard was Boris Lagutin. Lagutin had lost in the semi-finals of the Rome Olympics but had been virtually unbeatable ever since and had claimed both the 1961 and 1963 versions of the European Championships. One possible threat emerged at the start of 1964 in the shape of America’s Toby Gibson who reached the US Olympic team on the back of 12 straight inside the distance victories. Gibson lived up to his billing in his first fight in Tokyo but came unstuck against the unorthodox Ghanaian Eddie Davies who won with the help of two points deductions against Gibson. Meanwhile Lagutin moved serenely through the tournament although serene was not an apt description of his second round opponent José Roberto Chirino. Chirino became incensed by the decision of the referee to warn him for a minor rules infraction and struck out at the official, earning himself a disqualification. The Soviet boxer comfortably defeated Joseph Gonzales of France in the gold medal match and, despite losing his place on the national team following a poor post-Olympic run of results, returned to defend his title in Mexico City. In 1996 he became an adviser on sporting matters to President Yeltsin. Toby Gibson turned professional after the Games but quit after five fights to go to law school. He became a prosecutor and ran for a Superior Court judgeship but was disbarred after misappropriating his clients’ funds. He later served time in jail for armed robbery. Denmark’s Tom Bogs, who was defeated in the quarter finals, became one of his country’s most popular sportsmen although he failed in an attempt to become world light-heavyweight champion as a professional.