Yahoo News Coroner calls for white-collar boxing review after novice fighter's death
A coroner is to press the Secretary of State of Media, Culture and Sport to look into the unregulated world of white collar boxing after a young fighter died in a charity match. Dominic Chapman collapsed and died of a catastrophic brain injury following a six minute match at Tramps Nightclub in Worcester, back in April 2022.
Following an inquest into the 26-year-old's death, David Reid, senior coroner for Worcestershire, said that while he was satisfied that Dominic had been fairly matched with his opponent, he found a string of wider concerns about this branch of the sport which needed examining.
Dominic, a sports content writer, was the third person to have died taking part in a white collar boxing match since 2017. Mr Reid said he would ask the minister to "consider whether steps need to be taken" to regulate the industry.
The fatal match was staged by Ultra Events Limited. The inquest was told that there was a 20 kilo weight difference between two other matched boxers Chris Bedford and Luke Adlington. When they raised their concerns, Mr Reid said: "I'm quite satisfied that on the balance of probabilities" the weight was "not recorded properly and they were fobbed off."
Mr Reid said he would be preparing a Prevention of Future Death's Report to Ultra Events highlighting issues he found with the company's surrounding weight recording, lack of risk assessment and training.
In summing up, Mr Reid said Dominic suffered a subdural haematoma and died as a result of an accident. Sarah Owen, solicitor at Anthony Collins representing Dominic's family throughout the inquest, said: "It is saddening to the Chapman family that it has taken the tragic loss of their son and a coroner’s inquest for the serious failings of Ultra Events to be recognised.
"Having heard evidence that weights were incorrectly recorded and the company’s representative was ‘disinterested’ in concerns raised by participants on the night of the event, they don’t believe that Ultra Events can be trusted to self-regulate and ensure people’s safety.
"Dominic’s family greatly appreciate the seriousness with which the Senior Coroner has listened to and approached the evidence and their plan to provide a Preventing Future Deaths report to the Secretary of State at the department of Culture, Media and Sport.
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"Just like professional boxing, amateur or white-collar boxing carries a significant risk of life-changing injury, including traumatic brain injury, and yet it is not regulated. This means that novice boxers like Dominic can participate in an event having done only minimal training and completed few medical tests, and if they suffer a serious head injury, there may or may not be skilled medics and equipment on site to provide them with emergency medical care.
"There may not even be a doctor present at the ringside and local hospitals may not have been notified that the bout is happening. All of these things are important safety requirements for professional boxing events, and they could make a real difference to the outcome if a boxer is injured.
"Boxing as a sport can have enormous benefits for those taking part but there will always be a risk of serious, or even fatal, injury. The company that organised and hosted this event did not have the robust medical and safety measures in place, which would be standard for amateur and professional events.
"As a result, the event was unnecessarily dangerous for those taking part. Dominic’s family want people to understand this before they agree to take part in similar events, and they want to see safety improvements implemented to make white collar boxing safer for everyone.”
In a statement following the inquest, a spokesperson for Ultra Events said they offered Mr Chapman's family "our deepest condolences" and the welfare of those who took part in their events was an "absolute priority".
