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USA Boxing Alumni Association Profile:   Dr. Wilbert “Skeeter” McClure

    
1960 OLYMPIC GOLD: (L-R) Wilbert McClure, Cassius Clay and Eddie Crook, Jr.

 

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (August 20, 2018) – One of the classiest boxers to ever lace-up a pair of gloves is Dr. Wilbert “Skeeter” McClure, who is the only American boxer to capture an Olympic gold-medal and also earn a Doctor of Philosophy degree (Ph.D).

 

 

 

“When I think of ‘Skeeter’ McClure,” USA Boxing president John Brown said, “I think of the grassroots of our sport. When ‘Skeeter’ was a young boy growing up in Toledo, Ohio, he had a twinkle in his eye and a desire to box. We would learn later in life how talented, gifted and passionate ‘Skeeter’ McClure was about the sport of boxing.

 

 

 

“It would be impossible for me, somebody who has spent his entire life in boxing, to find a better representative of our sport than ‘Skeeter’ McClure.”

 

 

 

Nicknamed “Skeeter” because his father thought he looked no bigger than a mosquito at birth, McClure was born October 29, 1938 in Toledo, Ohio, and he developed into the perfect example of brains and brawn.

 

 

 

The now 79-year-old McClure earned degrees in literature and philosophy in 1961 from the University of Toledo and a doctorate in psychology from Wayne State University in Detroit. He was a professor at Northeastern University and late became a Massachusetts state boxing commissioner. In 2012, he was honored for his life’s work by the Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race and Justice at Harvard Law School.

 

 

 

McClure had an incredible boxing career, highlighted by his gold-medal performance at the 1960 Olympic Games, defeating his Italian opponent in Rome, Carmelo Bossi, to capture the light middleweight gold medal, despite fighting with a severely damaged hand suffered in the semifinals. The two other American gold medalists that year was his roommate and team co-captain, Cassius Clay (aka Muhammad Ali) and Eddie Crook, Jr.

 

 

 

During his illustrious amateur career, McClure was dominant in 1959-1960, winning gold medals at the 1959 Pan-American Games, two-time National AAU tournaments, 1958 International Diamond Belt. He was also named Outstanding U.S. Amateur Boxer in 1959.

 

 

 

Al Valenti, Special Projects Consultant for USA Boxing, has known McClure as long as anybody alive, “I had the pleasure of meeting ‘Skeeter’ McClure in the late eighties,” Valenti noted, “and since the day I met him I’ve held him in the highest esteem. I cannot find another boxer who has achieved what ‘Skeeter’ has during his life in boxing. He was a talented amateur boxer who won at every level and, beyond that, he served in the U.S. Army, earned a Ph.D in psychology, and he also had a long career as a college professor. One thing that stands out among his accomplishments is that he’s the kindest, most sincere gentlemen I’ve ever met.

 

 

 

“During his tenure on the Massachusetts Boxing Commission, he fully understood the sport and what was needed. As a promoter, I was never busier than when he oversaw boxing in Massachusetts. One of the highlights of my life is when I introduced ‘Skeeter’ to crowds at our events, after listening to his lists of accomplishments, how the crowd always gave him a standing ovation.

 

 

 

“Dr. Wilbert ‘Skeeter” McClure is a true champion and a class act. No American boxer will ever accomplish what he did.”

 

 

 

“I first met Wilbert at the 1964 National AAU Championships,” 1972 Olympic bronze medalist Jesse Valdez commented. “I had just turned 16. I had won the National Golden Gloves for the first time and went to the National AAU and got beaten by Quincy Daniels, who had won a bronze medalist at the 1960 Olympics with Wilbert. I said hello but really didn’t know Wilbert. I was young, shy and kept to myself. I didn’t realize he was an Olympic gold medal winner until later, while taking with the other guys. I was really impressed by his background.

 

 

 

“Wilbert is somebody kids today need to look up to. He’s a great example for kids coming up and dreaming about winning an Olympic gold medal. And Wilbert went on to get an education. He’s a great example for kids today in the program (USA Boxing).”

 

 

 

Legendary amateur boxing coach Roosevelt Sanders, who last year was inducted into the first class of the USA Boxing Alumni Association Hall of Fame, lost to McClure in the 1960 USA Olympic Trials.

 

 

 

“He (McClure) has always been nice to me,” Sanders added. “I didn’t know him, personally, but met him, fought him, and saw him fight on television. He’s a smart guy, always a gentleman, and being a U.S. Marine, we were taught to absorb that.”

 

 

 

In 1961, McClure turned pro and he was billed as the next Sugar Ray Robinson, largely due their similar boxing style. No endorsements, though, and the odds were really stacked against McClure reaching the same heights as a pro that he had attained as an amateur. During the early part of his professional career, McClure served in the U.S. Army, attended college and was married with a baby. After only 14 pro fights, the mismanaged McClure was rushed into difficult matches against the likes of future world champions and Hall of Famers Luis Rodriguez (twice) and Jose Torres, plus No. 1 contender Ruben “Hurricane” Carter (twice), from 1963 to 1966. McClure was on the losing end of four of those five fights, all by decisions, but he did fight Carter to a draw.

 

 

 

McClure retired from the ring in 1970 with a 24-9 (12 KOs) professional record. He eventually resettled in the Boston suburb of Chestnut Hill, where he taught at Northeastern University and later was a consultant to industry and government, teaching administrators how to deal with people.

 

 

 

1960 USA Olympic Boxing Team – Wilbert McClure is standing, third from the right, in front of Cassius Clay

 

 

 

 

USA Boxing Alumni Association

 

Created to champion a lifelong, mutually beneficial relations between USA Boxing and its alumni, –boxers, officials, coaches and boxing fans — The Alumni Association connects generations of champions, inspiring and giving back to USA Boxing’s future boxing champions, in and out of the ring.

 

 

 

The USA Boxing Alumni Association is open to anyone who has a love for boxing and would like to stay connected with amateur boxing. Members are granted access to a wide variety of special events hosted by the Alumni Association, including its annual USA Boxing Alumni Association Hall of Fame reception.

 

 

 

To join the Alumni Association, simply register at alumni@usaboxing.org for a $40.00 per year membership fee. New members will receive a T-shirt, keychain and e-wallet.

 

 

 

 

An eloquent speaker who was equally comfortable with corporate executives and boxing fans alike, McClure remained close friends with Ali, Carter and so many others he befriended in boxing. Today, he is in ill health but still receives unparalleled respect from all those he’s touched in and out of the ring and classroom.

 

 

 

Simply said, Dr. Wilbert “Skeeter” McClure is another outstanding USA Boxing product, as well as class personified.

 

 

 

INFORMATION:

www.usaboxing.org

Twitter: @USABoxing, @USABoxingAlumni

Instagram: @USABoxing

Facebook: /USABoxing

Boxing trainer Orlando Cuellar goes  Back to the Future at 5th St. Gym

MIAMI (October 26, 2016) — Internationally renowned boxing trainer Orlando Cuellar has come full circle,  right back to the famed 5th St. Gym in South Beach, where he once visited as a teenager to learn and now trains fighters out of six days a week.
Born in Havana, Cuba, Cuellar’s family resettled in Miami when he was three with Orlando living there through high school.  As an amateur boxer, Cuellar vividly remembers watching boxers at 5th St. Gym such as Cassius Clay, Willie Pastrano, Vinnie Curto and Florentino Fernandez, as well as legendary trainers, brothers Angelo and Chris Dundee.
“I watched and learned, picking up as much as much as I could,” Cuellar said.  “Now, I find myself working out of the 5th St. Gym for the past six weeks.  It’s been an incredible experience.  Every day, you never know who is going to walk through the doors there.  It’s been one of the best boxing gyms in the world for more than 50 years.  From the days dating back to Muhammad Ali, fighters have been attracted to this gym because of its rich history and great sparring, as well as to the area with South Beach’s restaurants, clubs and beach.  The warm, humid weather also makes it easier for fighters to lose weight running and training.
“(Owner) Dino Spencer is carrying on the 5th St. Gym’s tradition. Everyday I’m there is exciting for me.  Mixed ethnic groups train there and it’s a magnet for talent.   There’s sparring three days a week – I call it Spar-a-rama – and everybody’s welcome to challenge themselves.  The sparring is better than a lot of TV fights.
“5th St. Gym trainer Guy Laieta had been trying to convince me to join the team for the last five years.  I spoke to Dino on several occasions, expressing my desire to train fighters out of the 5th St. Gym.  He said, ‘Let’s do it.’ The success of the 5th St. Gym today has a lot to do with ownership.  Dino has a passion for boxing and he is very hospitable, which trickles down to his staff and fighters.  Good vibes all of the time!”
Cuellar left for Las Vegas in 1976 and, after he realized that being a boxer wasn’t in his best interest, he started training fighters there in 1981 out of Johnny Garcia’s Gym.  A year later, he shifted his base Brooklyn and started training fighters out of another boxing icon, Gleason’s Gym.  In 2000, he resettled in Miami.
Best known as world light heavyweight champion the head trainer of Glen Johnson, Cuellar also worked with future champions such as Nicolas Walters, Rances Barthelemy and Erslandy Lara, as well as Luis Franco, Aaron Davis and Juan Carlos Gomez, to name a few of the more notables.  Today, he’s the chief second for several top fighters including Antonio Tarver.
Recognized throughout boxing as a superior teacher, Cuellar’s success is mostly attributed to his training of fighters on an individual basis, focusing on their personal needs rather than giving all fighters the same instructions and attention.
“Each fighter needs personal and specific work to complement their God-given talents,” Cuellar explained.  “You can’t teach all fighters the same way.  I specialize on what I call old school meets new school.  Old school was upfront and personal to go 15 rounds, new school is about throwing more punches, more foot movement and fighting from the outside.  I teach doffense: defense + offense.  Punches aren’t vitamins, none should be taken.  Boxing is little more than a battle of reflexes; one fighters versus another, but the real trick is how the fighter uses his reflexes.  I teach my fighters how to turn the ring apron into a minefield.”
Boxing has played a huge role in Cuellar’s life.  Back in the 5th St. Gym is just another chapter in his unique life.
“I live through my fighters,” Cuellar concluded.  “Every victory is my proudest moment.  There are no big or little victories, every win is a happy moment because of all the hard work and sacrifices me and my fighter made during training camp.”
Orlando Cuellar is thrilled to have gone back to the future.