THERE IS A large percentage of young sports fans in Ireland who know Mike Tyson as the crazy guy from The Hangover rather than from his athletic prime. Tyson’s legal and ear-biting troubles eventually overshadowed his immense talent but even if you weren’t around to see him fight at his peak, you’ve probably see one of his knockout videos.
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AP / Press Association Images
AP / Press Association Images / Press Association Images
He was such an overwhelming tidal wave as a young pro – he was the world champion at 20 – that you would assume he was unstoppable as an amateur. The people over at BuiltToDominate have unearthed some great footage of a teenage Tyson and that assumption would appear to be true.
Funnily enough, despite winning gold medals at two Junior Olympics, Tyson never competed at the real thing. He was actually defeated as an amateur by Henry Tillman, who went on to win heavyweight gold at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, so while he might not have been the most decorated amateur, he was still insanely powerful.
And Tyson eventually avenged that amateur defeat in one round as a professional years later.
You've haven't known pure terror until you've seen Mike Tyson destroy people as an amateur
THERE IS A large percentage of young sports fans in Ireland who know Mike Tyson as the crazy guy from The Hangover rather than from his athletic prime. Tyson’s legal and ear-biting troubles eventually overshadowed his immense talent but even if you weren’t around to see him fight at his peak, you’ve probably see one of his knockout videos.
He was such an overwhelming tidal wave as a young pro – he was the world champion at 20 – that you would assume he was unstoppable as an amateur. The people over at BuiltToDominate have unearthed some great footage of a teenage Tyson and that assumption would appear to be true.
Funnily enough, despite winning gold medals at two Junior Olympics, Tyson never competed at the real thing. He was actually defeated as an amateur by Henry Tillman, who went on to win heavyweight gold at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, so while he might not have been the most decorated amateur, he was still insanely powerful.
And Tyson eventually avenged that amateur defeat in one round as a professional years later.
You can watch the full video of Tyson in headgear here.
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Amateur boxing ferocious Mike Tyson