Former world boxing champion raffles pads in fight against cancer
Former world boxing champion Richie Woodhall is offering a set of training pads signed by Welsh Wizard Joe Calzaghe in his latest fundraising event for a Shropshire cancer charity.
The pads are being offered as the prize in a charity raffle which aims to raise £500 for the Jayne Sargent Foundation.
Tickets in the raffle will cost £10 each, and the number sold will be limited to 50 to ensure everybody has a fair chance of winning the items.
Calzaghe beat Richie in a pulsating fight for the WBO super-middleweight world title in 2000, which would prove to be Richie’s last fight before he called time on his professional boxing career.
The two have been close friends ever since, and Calzaghe would go on to enjoy a remarkable career which would see him win all 46 of his professional fights and become the all-time longest reigning super-middleweight champion, holding the WBO title for more than 10 years.
Richie, who held the WBC super-middleweight title from 1998-1999, has raised thousands of pounds for cancer charities since the death of his father Len from the disease, five years ago this month.
The Jayne Sargent Foundation was set up by by Colin Sargent in memory of his late wife. It organises regular meetings where people can get support and advice about their condition.
Brilliant
Richie said it was a charity close to his heart after he got to know a couple of the people involved after one of his previous charity auctions.
He said: “The Jayne Sargent Foundation is a brilliant Shropshire based charity that gives tremendous support to people and their families living with cancer.
“They meet every month which can be very comforting and try to improve services in our area for people who are affected.”
He added that the pads would make a unique gift, as he had never seen any others before. The pads are quite special and I haven’t seen another pair signed by Joe,” he said.
“Gloves yes, but these are Lonsdale coaching hand pads and I reckon they would make a great gift for a boxing coach.”
The raffle is being run by Richie’s friend Lee Ellis. Tickets are on sale now through Lee’s Paypal account, and will continue until 50 have been sold, when he will perform the draw live on his Facebook page.
To buy tickets, either email Lee at Lee_Ellis82@hotmail.co.uk or telephone him on 07539 083969.
